It is almost Thanksgiving, but the media has been saturated with Christmas marketing. This year the onslaught has been a little earlier, probably due to the state of the economy. If the retailers advertise longer, they stand to possibly break even this year. Or so it would seem.

Here are my top picks for young children this Christmas. Look for more post on top gifts according to age, coming soon.

Fisher-Price Elmo Live
Elmo is always poplar with the littlest ones. Red, fuzzy, friendly, and so curious, what’s not to love?

Fisher-Price Kid-Tough Waterproof Digital Camera
Kids love taking pictures. This tough camera is perfect for any kid who is tough on toys. As a mom of small ones, I can verify this toy will save your camera and make your little one happy.

Little Tikes Giddyup N’ Go Pony
No barn? No problem! This guy doesn’t eat, clomp up your hardwood floor, or leave behind little ‘presents’.

Playskool Kota My Triceratops Dinosaur
Much like the Little Tikes pony, this guy doesn’t leave you a pile of dino poo to clean. That is a plus in any era, Jurassic or not.

KidKraft Large Play Kitchen
A wonderful, sturdy kitchen. The appliances are separate, unlike many play kitchens on the market in this price range. Colorful and nicely sized.

In the past year or so a very popular scam has hit the United States, targeting anyone who checks their mail. The scam involves a check so real that even banks do not catch on. The checks almost all have identical numbers on them, depending on the account they have been ‘drawn’ off of. The account numbers are real, the companies are real, and the money is even real, if you can get away with cleaning out your account before your bank freezes it.

Basically, if you take one of these checks to the bank, it will clear. But, you will be responsible for paying back any of it you spend and face possible jail time if you do not. The letters accompanying the check states you need to deposit the check into your bank account, let it clear, and then mail the company listed in the letter a handling or processing fee.

You would be amazed at how many people actually do this. So many that the Federal Trade Commission was astounded! (At least, the representative I spoke with). Most of the letters and checks are coming from individuals in Canada, so at this time the FTC has been having trouble pursuing the case.

Much like any scam, if you or a loved on gets a check in the mail with a letter asking you to deposit it and send back a small processing fee, get in contact with your postmaster. Do not, under any circumstances, deposit it into your account!

We have all been suckered into clicking on the really amazing ‘free’ offers that pop up online. From a year’s worth of diapers to free computers, it is out there. Who would not want a free year of something or other? I know that I would. In fact, the very first time I saw the diaper scam, I jumped right in and went all through the rigamarole of clicking what seemed like 5 million offers. Page after page of more junk kept popping up.

I kind of figured after the first page I had made a mistake.

So, what do you do when you see a free sample that seems to good to be true? Skip it. Seriously, most of these pages just want your email so they can spam you to death. All the spam filters in the world are not going to catch every single one of the mails you will receive.

Lately some of the freebie scammers have gotten smarter. They do not offer the big deals all the time. You may see a full size bottle of shampoo, a compact disc, or something similar. Not too ostentatious. There are also the ‘poll free offers where you choose your favorite star, singer, or even beverage. Steer clear of any of those! If you are redirected to a large colorful page that asks for your email only, close it!

When searching for free sample offers, stay with websites where the webmaster has either typed a good description or has stated they have used the links themselves. Taking the time to write a good description means that the webmaster has done a bit of research and checked out the free offer themselves most of the time. (Not always, but this is a good sign)

I rarely go for offers that need shipping and handling paid. You can find some offers that are worth it. Before paying for shipping check out the retail value of the product. If an item retails for much more than the shipping and handling fee, it is usually worth the charge, but only if this is something you know you will use.

Have you found something free that really rocked your world? Have horror stories of spam? Share!

Last night I was watching Criminal Minds. Something one of the characters said struck me pretty hard. I haven’t been able to get this out of my mind. This is a subject I feel very strongly on, but I want to know what you think.

In the show, a young boy had been murdered some twenty years before. A child predator had sexually assaulted him, then stabbed him repeatedly. Later, the same pedophile was making advances towards another boy who grew up to be one of the FBI agents. The Agent had vague memories of the situation. His parents had covered up the entire incident and the Agent had blocked much from his mind.

It turned out that the Agent’s mother had found out about the predator making moves on her child and informed the father of the murdered boy. This all happened about a year after thee unsolved murder. She pointed out the predator, who had also been seen with the murdered boy not long before he had been killed. The boy’s father beat the pedophile to death with a baseball bat.

This ‘crime’ had remained unsolved because no one noticed that the predator disappeared. He had a history of exposing himself to young children and the police in not one, but two states did not readily pursue the case of his murder, even when they found a bit of evidence that would have led straight to his killer. One of the characters, a police officer, asked the FBI Agents if they really wanted to pursue and prosecute someone who had performed a ‘Public Service Murder’.

That has really gotten to me. Though I do not feel we have a right to act as a god and choose who lives or dies, when a crime of this nature has been committed, is it really a crime? Removing from the population a predator such as a pedophile, child molester, child murderer, or any serial killer…should we ardently chase down a suspect? Should a father or mother who kills someone who hurt their child in a manner that will scar the child for life or take away their young life, be prosecuted. In this instance, hypothetically let’s say the parent knows without a doubt who the perpetrator is. There is no doubt whatsoever.

Is it wrong? Is there such a thing as Public Service Murder? Please, offer your thoughts.

Crayon stains are the bane of many parents and teachers around the world. More than once a crayon has found its’ way into the dryer, staining not only the original garment but often the entire dryer load. The clothing is salvageable, even with some old, set in stains.

Thanks to the invention of the sponge-like erasers on the market today, removal of crayon stains from surfaces other than fabric is easier than ever. At one time, it took a lot of elbow grease to get crayon off of walls and other areas. To remove crayon from painted walls, just use one of these ‘magic’ erasers with light pressure. With a soft touch, you may also use them on leather furniture to remove crayon stains.

If you do not have one of the eraser tools on hand, you can use a normal pink rubber eraser to remove crayon from some walls. This works much better than a washcloth or regular sponge.

There are many suggested methods of removing crayon from clothing and other fabric items. Before following any of the instructions or recipes, check your fabric label. Some items cannot be soaked with any liquid, others need a certain tempature to avoid damaging the fabric.

Methods:
1. Clothing with fresh crayon marks can be treated with a solution of one cup Ivory Snow detergent and one cup of baking soda in the warmest wash possible. Repeat until the stains are gone.

2. WD40- The Crayola site has a .pdf available with suggestions on how to remove stains from many of their products. WD40 is a lubricating spray available in most grocery, hardware, and discount stores in the U.S., other countries more than likely have similar sprays that will work in the same manner. Visit : The PDF page for more details.

3. Tough stains: Mix one cup dishwashing liquid (some swear by blue colored Dawn), one cup oxy cleaner, one cup color safe bleach, and one cup powder laundry detergent. Dishwashing liquid is known to remove grease, may help remove crayon as well.

This is for clothing that has been through the dryer with a crayon and the stains are set by the dryer. Many people swear by this recipe, though I suggest using it only if other methods have failed and you are going to throw out the item. For this formula, use the hottest water possible and dissolve one cup each dishwashing detergent (powder for dishwashers) and colorsafe bleach. Soak the item in the solution up to over night, then launder as usual.

If possible, try to catch stains before drying. All of the above methods can be used on clothing that have had a run in with crayons in the dryer, though.

The stockmarket isn’t the only thing to crash this month.  Unfortunately, several outages of the FamilyResource servers have left us worse for wear.  Many fantastic blog posts were lost, and right now the FamilyResource blog is on hold. 

We will be back soon, with a new, secure server so please hang in there!

You’ve got this sleeping thing mastered and your tot is practically sleeping through the night. Believe it or not he probably is because “sleeping through the night” according to pediatricians is six straight hours. But just when you think it’s safe to relax your sweet baby turns into a toddler.

Toddlers don’t want to sleep. They want to explore their world and not miss a thing. However now that they aren’t sleeping all throughout the day, they need sleep now more than ever. Luckily for you toddlers and preschoolers thrive on routine. But it’s up to you to be strong and keep up the steady bedtime routine even if they try to cajole, scream, or whine their way out of it.

Here are some great bedtime routine tips to keep your child in healthy sleep habits.

Don’t over do it. In order for the routine to be effective and trigger the time to go to sleep response in your child you have to be prepared to do it every night. If your bedtime routine takes hours is that something you’re always going to be able to do? Keep it short and sweet. Fifteen to twenty minutes is sufficient enough time from pj’s to bed to get your child ready to hit the pillow. Two books before bed and a song once their tucked in is plenty.

Early to bed. Toddlers need twelve to fourteen hours of sleep a day and Preschoolers need eleven to thirteen so it’s important they get their nighttime rest. If your child isn’t getting at least ten hours at night it can make for a fussy, whiny, unpleasant day. For this age group it’s best to set the bedtime between 7 - 8pm. This way even if they fight sleep they still have enough nighttime hours to recharge their batteries.

Stay firm. Children are amazingly clever and they will do anything possible to delay the inevitable bedtime. Nip this behavior in the bud by only allowing one delay tactic after you’ve tucked them in. Otherwise they will work this tactic to death. The best way to deal with that is to give the child something tangible. I made a free pass for Three-feet-of-fun and when he gives it to me for a drink or he forgot a stuffed animal or something then he’s done.

It can be completely adorable the reasons children come up with to get out of bed. Even if it tickles your funny bone you need to be stern and follow the routine. They don’t know how important it is that they get their sleep — but you do.

Babies can sleep anywhere up to eighteen hours a day. Sounds marvelous, doesn’t it? Sure. Until you find out that they only sleep in two to three hour bursts. This is especially draining on new parents. The best advice to give new parents is, “Sleep when the baby sleeps.”

While sage advice, it isn’t always possible. There are bills to pay, laundry to wash, housework to be done, so here are some helpful ways to get the little tot to sleep in longer stretches at night so you can catch up on some much needed ZzZz’s. These are also the basic training steps in teaching your baby how to sleep through the night.

Sleepy not sleeping. It’s tremendously important to put your baby to bed when he is drowsy but not asleep. You want to start encouraging good sleeping habits while their young, makes it much easier later on. The baby needs to learn to fall asleep on his own. If you put the baby to sleep and then lay him down, when he wakes in the night (other than hunger) he’s going to need and expect you to put him back to sleep — and they do wake up missing you.

Stimulations. Treat bedtime like its serious business. When laying your child down, do it with very little fanfare. No extra coddling, talking, cooing, nothing to stimulate your child into think its playtime. Same goes for night wake ups. When you go into the room for night feedings or emergency diaper changes don’t talk to your child or make eye contact. Just do what needs to be done with expedience and precision. You have to teach your baby that night time is for sleeping and if you engage your child you’re sending mixed signals.

Nightlights. Babies don’t know the difference between a light and the sun. So, you want to make sure that you keep the babies room as dark as possible at night so they can learn. I recommend a low wattage nightlight that leaves enough light to see by but not enough to be disturbing. It’s imperative that when the child wakes in the night that you don’t turn on extra lights. That keys the child into thinking its daytime which equals playtime.

These are the beginning steps to helping train your child on how to sleep through the night. And while you might not get through the night just yet, you’ll be amazed what a solid four to five hours will do for you.

Now you’re ready to move on to actually finding a school. You’ve weighed the different philosophies and decided on the one or couple that would best work for you and your child. The next step is doing the research — is there one of those schools in your area?

Word of Mouth. The best way to find good schools is by asking around. Ask your friends and family if they know of any schools in the area that are reputable. Strike up conversations with parents at parks or at the library to ask where their children go and if they’d recommend it. A personal reference is much better than an ad in a phone book.

Expert Help. The Childcare Aware hot line 800-424-2246 is an excellent resource to find schools in your area. They can give you the local numbers for childcare referral agencies and they can give you the skinny on great schools in your area. You can also get a list of accredited preschools in the area and while that doesn’t necessarily guarantee those schools will be a good fit for you it’s a good place to start looking.

Phone book. This is a last resort resource. The Yellow Pages don’t screen preschools anyone who buys ad space can put their school in the book. It’s an excellent starting point if you need it but remember you must do your homework.

Any school you decide on needs a closer look before you enroll your child. Make sure you not only interview the director over the phone but you go down and visit the school during school hours to get a feel for how the school truly is.

Questions to ask over the phone:
1.) Fees. If it’s a private preschool it will have some
2.) Hours. A school is no good if you need an 8 am to 5 pm and they’re only open til noon.
3.) Student to teacher ratio (7 students to 1 teacher is the ideal for ages 3 and 4)
4.) What holidays or weeks are they closed
5.) Their discipline philosophy
6.) Nutrition. Do they supply the food? Do you? Are there things you couldn’t send in a lunch? Things of that nature
7.) Lists of the daily activities

If you like what you hear then you want to schedule time to visit. You’ll want to meet the director and the staff. See the facilities, the play area, examples of the daily activities, and see if the kids generally seem to be having a good time.

Things to keep an eye out for while visiting:
1.) Is it a clean and safe environment
2.) Do the teachers seem happy with their jobs
3.) Do the kids seem happy with their teachers
4.) Is the equipment outside taking care of and safe

Don’t be afraid to ask questions and poke your nose around their facility. This is a place your child is going to spend a lot of time in when you aren’t around to make sure their safe. You can never be too careful choosing a school — do your homework.

With the start of the school year fast approaching some thought needs to be given about preschool and getting your child acquainted with the idea of school before they “have” to go. How do you find the school that is best for you and your child? Here is a list of things to do and consider in deciding on a school for your child.

What do you want out of a preschool?

Do you want your child to be in a structured learning environment or one that is less structured and incorporates activities like story time, singing, and dancing? There are five different preschool philosophies: Montessori, Waldorf, High/Scope, Bank Street, and other types.

The Montessori approach focuses on learning at a child’s own pace about different cultures, animals, plants along with reading, language, and math. Guides, what the ‘teachers’ are referred as, help encourage independence in children by asking the child if they want to try the task, need help doing it, or aren’t quite ready for it.

The Waldorf approach believes that a person is made up of the body, the spirit, and the soul. They focus on teaching children by stimulating these elements with creativity and their surroundings — painting, singing, stories, dress-up, and other things of that nature. Children get a lot of free play instead of watching TV, videos, or computer games.

The High/Scope approach revolves around a theory that children need to be interactive with people, ideas, materials, and events. And while they focus on letting the child be independent and let the children pick the activities they want to be engaged in, the teachers work closely side by side so that there is a lot of teacher/pupil interaction.

The Bank Street approach is considerably less structured and focuses on fostering a child’s development by offering different opportunities for physical, emotional, cognitive, and social growth — children are explorers, experimenters, and artists. Children in this type of school play with toys and materials that stimulate their imaginations with little or no structure.

Other types of schools generally don’t follow any one approach to the hilt but incorporate a lot of the different aspects of the other approaches into a melting pot of what works for them. So it’s important to know what you’re looking for in a school for your child so you know if the school offers what you want for your child. Not any one approach is more right than the others. It really just depends on how your child likes to learn and what you want your child to get out of the experience.