The weather has been less than stellar lately so my kids are spending a lot more time indoors. Since I limit TV time, they get bored sometimes after reading books and doing puzzles all day. When my 5 year old told me she was bored the other day, I happened to be looking at a magnet on the fridge.

I took the magnet and put it on the side of the stove. Her eyeballs popped out of her head. My 3 year old son exploded with excitement. Magnets are magic!

I told them to try the magnet on the doorknob, then the tub, then a chair leg. After that, they found all kinds of spots where the magnet would stick. They were so amazed and ended up amusing themselves with it for another half hour.

Try it.

The day has arrived – quicker than you could ever imagine – your baby’s first birthday! You want to make this first celebration of life fun, significant and memorable for both your little one and your guests, but how? I suspect you still find it challenging to shower and dress by noon, let alone plan an elaborate complicated party.

Your baby’s first birthday should be a day more about fun and celebration and less about stress for Mom, so I have a few ideas to create affordable, unique, once-in-a-lifetime party memories in a snap – and free-up more time to clean-up the mountainous piles of diapers, wipes tubs, toys, and peas splattered on the wall next to the high chair before your guests arrive!

Picture/Video Montage

Chances are you went and purchased a digital camera sometime ‘round week 13. Admit it – you have a ton of pictures on your camera that you haven’t yet uploaded, right? Now is the time!

• Check the software that came with your camera;
• Use pictures from birth to present;
• Add your favorite tear-jerker songs and let it run during the party on your PC!
• Or a create a DVD for playing on your television!

If you want to get really ambitious use some cute font from your word processing software, insert your favorite picture, and print out “CD covers” to create additional CDs or DVD’s for your guests to take home. If you need help a quick Google search will give you some great pointers.

Framed “Guest Book”

Let your guests write “guest book” entries on a canvas and create a piece of art your baby can keep for a lifetime. Any craft store will sell art canvases (those for acrylic paints work best) you can use for this project. The same store will usually have open wooden frames (no glass) that fit the canvas size you choose.

Decide on your color scheme: dark blue and silver, dark red and gold, or light pink and purple, for example.
For the background, choose any of the multitude of acrylic paints (Hint: The most expensive isn’t necessarily the best; you shouldn’t pay more than $5 per tube for this project, and one larger tube will paint a large canvas.).
Select one or more paint pens and choose colors that will show up well against the background.
Allow your guests to write a message to the baby with the paint pens on the canvas as they arrive.

After the party, use the wooden wedges provided with the canvas, place the canvas in the frame, and with a few whacks with a hammer you have professional looking framed art!

Tomorrow I will share a couple of other great ideas… stay tuned!

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Show off your little ones first birthday status with a birthday shirt from Define*Me Clothing:

Find great first birthday gifts at Pipsqueak Boutique:

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.3

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.