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April 01, 2010

Not a big fan of...

I confess:  I'm not a big fan of April Fools Day.  Nor Easter (waiting for a thunderbolt to strike me due to the religious implications of that last one).  I don't love Valentine's Day either.

Thing 2 woke up today and remembered it is April Fools "There's a spider on your head!  April Foooollllsss!!!" Call me a killjoy but this does nothing to my sense of funny.  (read: whatever honey - eat your breakfast)

And piggybacking right behind April Fools is Easter - for which we (and by we I mean ME) is apparently supposed to be decorating the house with cute bunnies, hiding eggs, buying chocolate, painting eggs and perhaps attending a reglious house of worship (she typed as she looked for that thunderbolt).  Really, I don't care so much about Easter.

And I know Easter is just one day - like Christmas - and birthdays and all that -- and I have no problem putting the time and energy into entertaining, decorating and celebrating those days.  But April Fools, Easter, Valentine's Day...they just don't float my boat.

Perhaps, I should get in the swing of things by doing my own little April Fools Jokes:
  • "I made a dinner everyone will love to eat!  ha ha April Fools!"
  • "I have emptied the laundry baskets!  hee hee April Fools!"
  • "Sure let's have a playdate on a school night.  wa wa April Fools!"
Perhaps I'm just the grinch of spring.

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March 30, 2010

Alvin and the Chipmunk Interview

I had the opportunity to meet and interview the humans behind Alivin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (which happens to release today to DVD and Blue Ray  with a great combo pack which includes bonus content and a squeak-a-long)...

Read The Squeakquel - The Interview over at The Yummy Mummy Club

and then read Alvin and The Chipmunks show us family over at Today's Parent

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March 29, 2010

Giveaway: neatfreak laundry tote






THE WHAT: neatfreak provides imaginative solutions that make your life easier, keep things organized and help you control the chaos.

THE HOW: neatfreak's line of laundry products has everfresh™: 100% environmentally friendly enzymes built into the fabric work continuously to eliminate odor
THE GIVEAWAY:WIN one neatfreak single fashion laundry tote.  The tote has 2 exterior pockets for carrying detergents or other laundry accessories, easy to carry handles, snap closure  and large capacity. 

TO ENTER:  Leave a comment to this post answering this question: “Who is the biggest neatfreak you know and why?”.

Rules (because life has rules)
* you can comment once per day

* Tweet the contest once per day: @ParentClub using the #ParentClub hashtag (comment that you did so) = an additional entry

* Blog about this giveaway once with a link back to Parent Club (comment that you did so) = an additional entry

* Giveaway only open to Canadian residents.
* Giveaway runs until April 7th.(*winner will be randomly drawn)


(neatfreak products are now available at Walmart Canada)

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March 28, 2010

Pull-Ups Potty Dance Blog Tour

Ah, the potty training days (which felt like years and years at the time). It is a whole new level of parenting - whether you are a new potty-training-parent or a seasoned-veteran of the potty. Parent Club has been selected for a blog tour; sharing experiences about potty training.

THE WHAT: Pull-Ups Potty Dance gives kids a fun ritual and makes the whole potty training process positive and happy for everyone. The dance is intended to "...reduce anxiety and motivate success throughout the potty training journey".

First of all, I call liar liar pants on fire to anyone who says potty training can be done in a day. In my experience, the potty wasn't conquered in a day. Going potty is a learnt skill...and so is potty motivating. Kids need to learn the sensations and habits of "going" and parents need to learn the coaching and patience getting potty success.
Let's start off by agreeing that: potty training should always be based on positive reinforcement - like the potty dance (take a look at the video!)...

We always used a reward system - and I will advise to always make your reward PORTABLE - because one day your child will have to go to the big-boy bathroom at the mall or on an airplane or at a highway bathroom stop in France - and your reward will need to be with you.
We always, always used praise (because its always nice to hear you did a good job! - it grows confidence, it reinforces accomplishment, it makes one feel loverly). In addition to praise, we had some hits and misses with potty rewards:
  • Smarties (a hit!). One smartie for every success. {Aside: I knew someone who's potty training son WOULD NOT go #2 in the potty. WOULD NOT. So she gave him one "poo pill" (aka: Smartie) a day which would help him go - without pain - the next day. This reduced his anxiety about the whole #2-in-the-potty deal. Not to say it will work for all - but it worked for her}.
  • Tattoos (a miss!). They were a big treat - but after a few days of successful potty use Thing 1 looked like a bad reality tattoo show (or a biker).
  • Band-aids (a hit!). Character-featured-glow-in-the-dark band-aids were a great reward. They lasted less time than tattoos (see bad reality show above), Thing 1 could choice from an assortment, they were portable (see France above) and band-aids bring attention. "What happened to you?!" "I went potty!"
I think - above all - the best advice for parents is to remain calm and be consistent. Yes, there will be a mountain of extra laundry. Yes, it might feel like years. Yes, you will have to coach like you have never coached before.

But as my mother told me: "no one has ever gone to high school in diapers..." (let's hear a woot woot for mom experience!).  Lesson learnt: everyone becomes "a big kid now" eventually. Stick with it.
(The Pull-Ups Potty Dance Blog Tour is part of a Mom Central blog campaign - a fan-ta-bu-lous parenting website)

Do you have a potty training experience or tip to share? Comment below (because it's kind of like a positive reward...see positive rewards above)

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