Finding the right sippy cup for both my babies proved to be a fairly difficult task. It never crossed my mind when I bought my daughter’s first sippy cup that she would refuse to drink out of it. Unfortunately, I wasn’t lucky enough to win on the first try.

I bought pretty much every different brand and type of sippy cup I could find until I finally figured out she would only drink out of the hard plastic spouts on the Playtex sippy cups.

I know a lot of other parents have the same problem with their babies which can be extremely stressful when they’re trying to wean their baby off the bottle breast.

Introducing a sippy cup to your baby at about 5 or 6 months is typically one of the first steps in the weaning process. If your baby is refusing to drink out of a sippy cup, it could be that they need a different kind.

I’ve got a list of sippy cups that are not only favorites of picky babies, but they’re all Bisphenol-A (BPA) free. You can check out the best sippy cups here.

An unconventional yet effective way to trick your kids into eating vegetables

Both my kids love to eat fruit but I have a hard time getting them to eat certain vegetables.

One time I bought some sugar snap peas at the grocery store. These are possibly my favorite veggie, so I put some in a bowl and sneaked them into my mouth when my kids weren’t looking.

It’s getting harder and harder to pull the wool over their eyes as they get older, so they eventually spotted me being stealthy with some food. Even though they had no idea what I was eating, they still insisted on eating some. It’s impossible for me to sneak food then have them find out and NOT beg for some.

Now, when I want them to eat a vegetable that they won’t normally eat at the table, I’ll put them in a bowl and pretend to sneak them. My evil plan works every time. They come running and gobble those vegetables down without ever being the wiser.

This little trick might not work for that long, but it should work long enough to give them a chance to develop a palette for all kinds of veggies.

I’ve been on a recycling kick recently where I recycle absolutely everything possible. However, this means that my recycling drawers (the two biggest drawers in my kitchen cupboards) get full pretty fast.

My little two year old discovered the contents of these drawers a couple weeks ago and ever since I’ve had yogurt, margarine, and fruit cup containers all over the house. At first I was annoyed that I had these plastic containers laying around but then I realized how great they are.

Both my son and daughter have been playing with them non-stop. All those expensive toys they’ve been given over the years have been untouched. Instead, they’re building “castles” by stacking the containers, counting them, pretending they’re all sorts of things.

Then, at the end of the day, cleanup is a snap since they all stack together and take up little space.

If you’ve been throwing these kinds of things away, or shipping them out to recycling bins, consider using them for toys instead. Obviously you don’t need to keep every single one, but they’re extremely versatile as toys.

Here are a few ideas:

• Bath toys – The kids love to fill them up with water and pour them out over and over again.
• Toy storage – They’re great for storing smaller items like puzzle pieces, legos, etc., especially if you keep the lids.
• Games – You know the game where you put three cups face down and one has a ball underneath? Then you move them around and someone has to guess which one the ball is under? Kids LOVE that!
• Counting – I get my 4 year-old daughter to count the containers all the time. She never gets tired of it. My 2 year-old is learning to count now as well.
• Crafts – You can paint them, glue things onto them, stick them together – all kinds of possibilities.

At the end of the day, when the containers get wrecked or the kids grow tired of them, just chuck them in the recycling bin. Easy as pie and free of charge.

A few weeks ago I took my 2 year old son and 4 year old daughter to a local restaurant.

Normally, the thought of taking them to public places scares me because my son throws tantrums 100% of the time. However, I thought it would be good for them to get out and get used to being in public more.

I chose the local diner because it’s a family owned restaurant with a very laid-back atmosphere.

When we first arrived, things were going really well until my son decided he wanted to sit where my daughter was sitting. All hell broke loose from then on.

Thankfully, the restaurant owner had a pail full of toys stowed away for cases like this. My son was enthralled with all these new things to play with, and before he even had a chance to get bored of them, the owner had brought out a plate of cake for each of my kids.

I was able to finish my meal in peace and my kids had fun playing (even though they didn’t eat even half of their meals).

Even so, I realized that I should have planned our little outing a lot more carefully. Next time, i will make sure to do the following:

• Bring a few toys to keep them entertained until the food comes
• Bring sippy cups with water
• Choose a family-oriented restaurant where they won’t mind noisy kids
• Bring some crayons and scrap paper
• Have an idea of what I want to order beforehand to minimize the waiting time
• Ask the host to seat you me in an area that isn’t quite as crowded (if possible)
• Don’t go during a time when my kids are normally cranky (nap time, when they’re really hungry, etc.)
• Bring a small bag of snacks to tide the kids over, like carrot sticks, crackers, etc.

Every baby develops at different levels, so the age at which they’ll sprout their first tooth could be anywhere between six and nine months. The first few teeth to pop through can be pesky. They may peek through the gums only to recede for another few weeks. You may see this process go on for quite awhile before they finally stay put.

While your baby is cutting teeth, you’ll probably notice red, swollen gums. You should also be able to feel the teeth under the gums if you rub your finger on them. If they’re close to coming through, your baby will probably bite down hard on your finger.

You may also notice your baby is chewing on everything in sight and drooling incessantly. This is a good time to introduce teething rings and other teething remedies if you haven’t already.

Some other signs that your baby is teething:

• Your baby is cranky or crying more often than normal
• Loss of appetite
• Change in sleeping patterns
• Diarrhea and/or diaper rash
• Drool rash around their mouth

The first teeth to come through are typically the bottom front ones. They normally come in pairs, but don’t be alarmed if they don’t. Once the bottom two front teeth are in, the top two front ones will probably follow right after.

By the time your child is three years old, they should have 20 primary teeth. These will stick around until your child is around kindergarten age. A general rule of thumb is if you were a late bloomer when it came to teething, chances are your child will be too. However, if your baby hasn’t sprouted their first tooth by the time they’re a year old, check with your physician or dentist to make sure your baby’s development is on the right track.

It is every parents worst fear… but not preparing your children for how to deal with emergencies doesn’t mean they won’t happen.

Here are some tips to help you prepare for the worst:

• Teach your young child to dial 911 and explain repeatedly that the number is only for use in a serious emergency.
  

• Older children will understand that they should only call 911 if their parent is unconscious or they are alone in the home.
  

• In addition to knowing how to call 911, even young children should learn their home address and phone number along with the full names of their parents.
  

• Remind your child that staying calm in an emergency is the most effective way to make clear judgments, but keep your own expectations realistic and know that children will panic.
  

• If you are leaving your child alone for an extended period of time, ask a trusted adult to check in on them occasionally.

I think it’s never to early to ask your kids to help you with chores around the house. When my daughter turned two, I would get her to help me pick up toys at night, even if she only put a few in the toy basket. Now that she’s almost three, she picks up her own toys and if she throws food on the floor, I’ll ask her to pick it up instead of doing it myself.

At night when I’m getting her brother ready for bed, I’ll get her to do a few things for me like putting things back where they belong, or throw her brother’s dirty clothes in the laundry basket.

Some other things you can get your toddler to do are making their bed, feeding a pet, or even helping prepare meals. Even if it’s something as little as pouring a cup of water into a mixing bowl, it’s a great experience for them at this young age. It gives them a sense of pride an accomplishment, while also teaching them some responsibilities.

Here’s a little trick I use when I need to get my house clean in a hurry.

It’s hard keeping the house clean with two little ones running around. Especially when one is in the stage of throwing food on the floor and the other one is constantly dumping the toy box all over the house. I also like to spend as much time with my kids as possible, so I want to spend as little time cleaning as I can.

To do this, I just set the timer on the stove to an hour, and get as much cleaning as I can done in that time frame. If I’m really stretched for time, I’ll only set it to 30 minutes. You can use your microwave to do this too.

If I don’t give myself a time limit, I’ll end up cleaning all day long! I’m a bit of a perfectionist, so it can take me a long time just to do the dishes. But when I set a timer, I’ll try and get it done as quickly as possible so I can move on to another task before the timer runs out.

Water is extremely important to your health, especially if you’re trying to get back into pre-pregnancy shape. The benefits to drinking water are many, but here are just a few.

By drinking the recommended 8 glasses a day, you’re also setting a good example for your kids to drink water as well. In fact, every time I sit down with a glass of water, my daughter asks for one too. I don’t forbid pop or juice, but she actually prefers water.

If you’re not drinking enough water each day, today is the perfect time to start. I’ve done up a handy checklist for you to print to help you get started. It will help you keep track of how many glasses you’re drinking a day, and after a couple weeks, it should be habit.

Did you know that your body doesn’t show signs of thirst until long after your body needs water? A lot of people actually mistake thirst for hunger. Once you start drinking more water, your natural thirst will start to come back quickly and you’ll also find that you’re eating fewer calories each day. Yes, you will have to pee more times a day at first, but that will also get back to normal in a short while.

You can download your water checklist here.

If your baby is 6 months or older but refuses to eat iron-fortified infant cereal, don’t worry. At that age, their tiny tummies can actually tolerate other foods like jarred baby food, or homemade baby food like pureed fruit, vegetables and meat.

If your baby doesn’t like cereal, try adding some slowcooked meat into a blender or food processor with a bit of the meat liquid and serve that to them. They’ll still receive iron from the meat, but the iron in vegetables isn’t absorbed as easily. They’ll need to eat a lot more veggies to get the same amount of iron in one serving of pureed meat.

It wasn’t until recently that we were told to feed our babies solids at 4 months of age. However, new recommendations state that we don’t need to start babies on solids until 6 months of age. Until then, formula or breastmilk provides all the nutrients that they need.

At 4 months, infant cereal would be all a little baby’s stomach could handle, but at 6 months, their digestive system is more developed and can digest more foods. That’s good news for you if they don’t like that yucky cereal.