It’s Not Too Late to Make a Homemade Gift – With Your Child!

by Shannon on December 23rd, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Crafts with Kids

Shadow Box for Children’s Art

My daughter and I have spent the last two days making homemade gifts and she and I both are so happy with the results, we don’t want to give away what we’ve made. First, we made a shadow box inspired by the scrap boxes of Darcy Miller. In addition, Miller has recently put together scrap boxes to commemorate a trip to Disney World and they are wonderfully inspiring as well. As usual, preschool girl was more than willing to color a picture for someone special, so I snapped a few photos of her while she created her masterpiece. I asked her to “sign” it and created a shadowbox with the art, picture of the artist and the media (crayons!).

The tools you need: shadow box, card stock, glue gun, artwork, picture of child during the creative process, ruler, scissors/paper cutter, spray adhesive (not pictured; I didn’t realize how handy it would be) and double-sided tape.

Begin by laying out your artwork and keepsakes to make sure you like the arrangement. Then place spray adhesive on the back of the artwork and mount it to the back of the shadowbox. Make sure to double check your placement of objects against any allowances for the frame. My frame required a 1/4″ space around the edge of the mounting space.

Then begin hot glueing the crayons in place. I tried removing several crayons and covering a four-inch square area with glue then placing the crayons on, but found the glue dried far too fast. I had much better luck placing a line of glue and adhering the crayons one at a time.

Next I selected card stock for the background of my photo and decided on the appropriate size. I cut the card stock and photo and used double-sided tape to affix them to one another. For added depth in the shadow box, I used “puffy” stickers available at craft stores to mount the image and backing to the crayons.

Finally, place the photo and reassemble the shadow box. Our artwork featured a Christmas picture and my daughter was sporting her holiday PJs, but you could tailor this project to any holiday by altering the artwork, color of crayons and photo composition. The possibilities are endless!

Kids’ Year of Growth Photo Albums

Next, we made photo albums that document a year of growth for my preschool girl and toddler boy. It’s amazing how much our children change over the course of a single year and I thought close family members would like a “year in photos”. I chose one photo of each child from each month and printed them at the local photo kiosk. You would think that would result in 24 photos, but I couldn’t choose just one for some months and ended up with 35 photos, and even that few was hard. In fact, I will say that choosing and labeling the photos are the most time-consuming parts of the job.

For this project, you’ll need: desired photos, card stock cut to size of photos (I used standard 4X6, but you could certainly get fancy), photos, hole punch (single hole punch works best), ribbon, labeling materials (markers, stickers, etc), and scissors.

My daughter is just learning to write and I asked her to print “Merry Christmas” on the covers for our albums. She looked at all the letters involved and said, (sigh) “Dat’s a wot of work!” So I did what any good mother would do, I bribed her with Hershey’s Kisses. I think she did a great job:

I began by labeling the back of each photo with the name, month and age of each child. Then assemble the photos in the order you wish and begin punching holes. It is important to line up the holes throughout the entire stack of photos. Then feed your ribbon through and tie. I found it helpful to feed the ribbon through a small stack of photos at a time.

I’ve made these photo albums as keepsakes for birthday parties, to capture a holiday season and for friends’ when I accumulate a number of photos of them or their children. Because you and your child create the cover, this is a really special item to place in a keepsake box as well.

Thursday Giveaway Linky

by Kate on December 23rd, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Giveaway Linky, Weekly Features

Happy Holidays! Thanks for taking some time during this hectic time of year to link up and browse giveaways. After you link up here, make sure to visit Baby Loving Mama and link up there, too.

Baby Signing Time Videos–Perfect for Christmas or Anytime–Review + Giveaway

by Kate on December 22nd, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Baby, Giveaways, Parenting, Reviews, Toddler

When I was pregnant I imagined signing with my newborn baby. He would communicate his every need through clear hand signals long before he developed the ability to talk. Crying would be minimized because I would know exactly what he needed. (You experienced mommies can stop laughing at me now.) Okay, I knew Jack wouldn’t be born signing, but I hoped he would learn it quickly. A friend mentioned how much they liked a series of videos called Baby Signing Time and I had to check it out.

What is Baby Signing Time?

Signing Time and Baby Signing Time are fun videos (and companion CDs, books and more) that “combines clever songs, animation, and real signing babies – all age two and under – to make signing easy and fun.”  Each “lesson” includes Rachel demonstrating the signs and a catchy song that helps explain the sign and its meaning. Your baby can do the sign along with Rachel and the babies and may even pick up some of the extra signs Rachel uses as she talks. Check out Signing Time’s YouTube Channel to see for yourself how fun the videos are.

Sisters Rachel Coleman and Emilie Brown developed Signing Time and Baby Signing Time after learning that Rachel’s daughter Leah was profoundly deaf. The sisters saw how signing helped Rachel’s daughter communicate and also helped Emilie’s children express their needs before they could speak.

While sign language is beneficial for every child, Rachel confesses a more personal goal. She says, “My hope is that everyone will know a little sign, just as most people know a little Spanish – so when your child sees my child at the park, there would be no awkwardness, no communication barrier, just three signs… “Hi … friend … play’… that is all it would take to change her world.”

The entire story is impressive and touching. You can read it at Signing Time’s Our Story.

Benefits of Signing

Several studies have shown that learning to sign helps children communicate earlier, have improved vocabularies (compared to their non-signing peers), have higher IQ’s, be better adjusted and read at an earlier age. Signing may even help manage some of the “terrible two’s” because when a child can communicate “juice, not milk” he may not feel the need to throw a temper tantrum.

Do you have a child with special needs? Signing Time may provide even more benefit for your family!

Evidence is also mounting that children with special needs, such as apraxia of speech, autism, or down syndrome who have difficulty with speech can make great strides in their communication development whenSigning Time is part of their regimen. The multi-sensory approach of Signing Timeengages visual learners, kinesthetic learners, and auditory learners of all ages and abilities, while making sign language easy and fun.

Our Experience

I was expecting the videos to be a bit instructional (dry) but they are really fun to watch. The videos would still be worth watching if you took away all the value of signing. And after the first couple times watching the videos I thought we might not be getting any value out of the signing because Jack was more interested in watching than signing. (We’ve also been trying to teach signs “more” and “all done” for a while with no luck.)

This photo was taken when we were learning the sign for milk. I’m not sure if it means that he fully embraced the sign or completely missed the point (that’s milk all over my leather ottoman). But, just a few days later he made the sign for milk for the first time, a sign we both learned from Baby Signing Time. I was so excited I went running for a bottle. Now he will look at the bottle and sign milk. It’s adorable and so exciting to be able to communicate with him.

To Buy or Not to Buy

To Buy…Baby Signing Time videos are great tools for learning signs and are a fun way to spend time with your baby. I love that the messages are good for baby’s learning, above and beyond the signs. For example, baby learns that “mom has a mom and she’s my grandma” while learning signs for mom, dad, grandma and grandpa. Baby Signing Time is designed for babies 3 months to 3 years. Older children might still enjoy Baby Signing Time, but may prefer the original Signing Time series.

Not to Buy…You can try out Baby Signing Time by asking for them at your local library if you are concerned you won’t like them. If they don’t have the videos, the library may be able to borrow or purchase the DVD’s for their collection. That may work for a while, but I’m confident that you will quickly want your own to watch over and over.

Shop! There’s still time to get Baby Signing Time by Christmas! Order by 11:55 am MST December 23rd and choose FedEx overnight shipping. Individual DVD’s are available from $21.99 at Signingtime.com, but it’s worth it to get a set. You can get the whole Baby Signing Time Collection for $149.99. Baby Signing Time products are also available at Amazon.com.

Win! Baby Signing Time Baby Shower Bundle worth over $55!

How to Enter: Visit SigningTime.com and learn about all their great products. Come back and tell us about your favorite.

Bonus Entries – valid only after completing the first required entry. Please leave a separate comment for each you do.

Giveaway ends January 7. Open to US mailing addresses only.

Disclosure: Thanks to Baby Signing Time for providing a product for the purpose of this review and the giveaway prize. Opinions are my own/Jack’s.

Bookends for Kids

by Kate on December 22nd, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Shopping

Hopefully your little one will get some great books this holiday season. I know from experience that an expanding library can quickly become unruly so here are some of the best looking bookends for your child’s room.

I love the simplicity and shabby chic look of the Charn & Company Half Moon Book Ends (Layla Grayce, $54). They’re sophisticated enough for an older girls’ room but would look darling in a nursery as well. In fact, they would look pretty darn good in my daughter’s room, don’t you think?

The bright colors and small frames in the Stephen Joseph Peace Wooden Bookends ($27, Amazon) are sure to please your tween girl.

On trend with the love of all things owl, I Sew Lucky has a huge assortment of weighted fabric owl bookends ($22 – 26) perfect for boys, girls and gender neutral rooms. The little creatures can hold a few books and are absolutely adorable.

Tautina offers awesome wood bookends. How perfect are the Robot Bookends ($29, Amazon). And given my son’s love of dinosaurs, I have to share the Dinosaur Bookends ($31, Amazon).

Happy Shopping! And happy reading.

Oh, Christmas Tree!

by Kate on December 21st, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Weekly Features, Wordless Wednesday

This Christmas tree with one box of ornaments is the extent of our Christmas decorations. The one box I can’t seem to find from our move is, of course, the Christmas decoration box. No ornaments, no decorations, no Christmas stockings, and no base of our fake pre-lit Christmas tree. My mom and brother took pity on us and bought and delivered a tree, lights and ornaments.

But, beyond that I just can’t get in the spirit without my husband so we have no lights outside, no Christmas cookies, nothing festive. (How embarrassing that I’ll be buying cookies for Santa!) Oh well. We have a lovely little tree and we have each other. That’s what’s important.

I look forward to seeing your photos.

Heifer International

by Kate on December 21st, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Ten Dollar Tuesday, Weekly Features

This is the season’s final Ten Dollar Tuesday devoted to spotlighting a worthy charity. It has been so rewarding to share causes and organizations that are important to me – and to use money earned from The Shopping Mama to give a little back every week.

If 10 readers of The Shopping Mama give $10, that’s a $100 donation, or in this case if 12 of us donate $10 it’s a sheep! That more of you that give, the more impact we can have. $10 can add up quickly and be incredibly meaningful to charities and the families they benefit.

Heifer International

Heifer International is a unique and remarkable organization that I’ve been familiar with for years, but this is the first time I’m donating – and I’m excited to give a share of a sheep! Since 1944, Heifer has worked to “end hunger and poverty in a sustainable way” basically putting this proverb into action: Give a man a fish; you feed him for a day.  Teach a man to fish; and you feed him for a lifetime.

“Heifer helps empower millions of families to lift them out of poverty and hunger to self-reliance through gifts of livestock, seeds and trees and extensive training, which provide a multiplying source of food and income.”

Donate a Sheep from Heifer | Shear Joy

Entire communities depend on wool and meat from sheep. Struggling families use sheep’s wool to make clothes, or sell it for extra income. Sheep often give birth to twins or triplets and can graze even the hilliest, rockiest pastures unsuitable for other livestock.

Some Heifer families use managed grazing techniques or zero-grazing pens to protect the environment and collect manure for fertilizer, which improves soil and pasture land.

Warm in winter, cool in summer, waterproof and durable – wool is a valuable product that struggling families can use for clothing or sell for extra income.

All over the world, Heifer partners are raising sheep to advance the cause against hunger and poverty. And, through the act of Pass on the Gift, they are also sharing training and animals with other families in need.

Shop! The Heifer International Gift Catalog has everything from a Share of a Sheep for $10 to a Heifer for $500. And, if you’re still stumped on what to get someone for Christmas, purchase a gift in their name. I, for one, know I’d be honored and moved if someone donated Trees in my name.

I was not paid for this post, but I did pay to donate a share of a sheep in your name.

Edited to add: And this, is why I adore Emilie. :) She made my night!

Edited again to add: I’m giddy! Candace gave me a flock of chicks!

Smart Grid Technology: The Future of Energy & How It Relates to Moms

by Kate on December 21st, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Blogging

Earlier this month, Monica and I attended a presentation from AEP Ohio and Silver Spring Networks. The companies have teamed up to bring Smart Grid technology to Ohio. Before attending I was most interested in hearing the “angle” and how they would make it relevant and interesting to moms. Much to my pleasure, they didn’t “dumb down” the information or twist it to make it interesting – it just was. And both Monica and I learned a lot.

What Is Smart Grid?

An easy to understand definition of Smart Grid from Silver Spring Networks, a company that works with energy providers to create a network:

Our electrical grid is outdated and demand is outpacing the supply.The smart grid transforms our electrical system into a modern network that empowers utilities and consumers to revolutionize how we create and consume energy. A smart grid delivers electricity from suppliers to consumers using digital technology to save energy, reduce cost and increase reliability.

So Silver Spring Networks “provides hardware, software and services that connect every device on the grid” to create a wireless network allowing electricity devices to communicate with the power provider. In our case, this provider is AEP Ohio.

How smart grid benefits consumers.

  • Address our aging infrastructure, which approximately 60% of will need to be updated within the next 10 years.
  • Save consumers money by allowing them to monitor their energy consumption and make more informed decisions.
  • Environmental benefits of smart grid technology will reduce the need to build more fossil-fueled power plants while encouraging the use of renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

The current and future tools of the smart grid technology.

  • You will soon be able to receive alerts via text, email, and telephone call as you move through the energy tiers towards higher costs for electricity.
  • Smart meter technology will alert your utility company in the case of a power outage so they can restore your power faster.
  • In the future you will be able to control the energy usage of the appliances in your home through chip connected to your home area network.
  • Offering consumers the ability to opt into to new pricing programs to move away from existing flat rates.
  • Offering consumers the option to receive a rebate in return for allowing AEP to send set back signals to a Programmable Communicating Thermostat during peak load conditions.

Kate’s Thoughts

One of the talking points that really resonated with me about Smart Grid is this: Imagine you gas up your car every week for a month without knowing how much you’ve spent or how much gas you’ve purchased. Rather, you get a bill at the end of the month that you have to pay. Well, that’s how our power works at this point. As consumers, we really have no idea how much we’re using or what we owe until the bill arrives. Sure, you can guesstimate how much you’ll owe, but wouldn’t it be better to know how much energy you’re using in real time? Smart Meters provide that information (and more) to consumers and also provide information to the power company. For example, if you lose power because a wind storm knocks down a power line, the Smart Grid will automatically know and respond by re-allocating power to restore power to consumers more quickly. Pretty cool. You can see a comparison of a traditional meter and Smart Meter to the left.

Monica’s Thoughts

When we were invited to this Luncheon by AEP and Silver Spring Networks, I have to admit I wasn’t sure what to expect. I am neither an energy expert or honestly have ever really thought about how energy is metered, priced, and monitored. After hearing now gridSmart technology can change the way we think about energy, I am honestly a little bit excited to see this technology enter our everyday lives in the near future.

One of the things I kept asking myself throughout the presentation was, “How is this technology going to impact me as a stay at home mom who, let’s face it, is plugged in to pretty much everything all day long?” Well, for one thing, the new energy management tools that will become available will make me, as the main “house manager” be able to see my energy use in a more timely fashion by being able to view my daily use online or through an in home display monitor that will show me my electricity use and costs.

They also introduced the idea of time-of-day rates for customers who chose to enroll in this particular pricing option.  Apparently peak hours of use are from 1-7, and energy costs would be most expensive during this time, and significantly lower during other times.  Well, for me, this option isn’t necessarily the best one. Like most stay at home moms, my washer, dryer, dishwasher, a/c are all pumping full throttle  during those precious hours (especially 1-4 when little ones tend to nap!) So, I would be better off going with a flat rate(similar to what we all currently have) for electricity.  However, for families who have all children in school, and adults out of the home at work all day, the Time-of-day pricing could save them a considerable amount of money. Regardless of what pricing option you would choose, what is nice is that there is actually an option, to better suit the different energy demands of different households. Currently, not many people have this option.

Tips to Conserve Now

Regardless of what type or electric meter you have, or if you have been converted to an energy saving system in your area, one thing we all need to think about is what type of a world do we want to leave our children? We all can do a few little things that can do so much for our energy use and costs, and therefore conserving natural resources and maintaining our planet for our precious children. Here are a few of those things:

  • In hot weather set your thermostat to 78, in cold weather 68. Maintaining a consistent temperature within a few degrees saves energy
  • Install a programmable thermostat to use less energy cooling and heating when you are away or asleep
  • avoid running ovens, dryers during the hottest times of day
  • Set your water heater to 120 to 140 degrees
  • Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFLs
  • Caulk, seal, and weather strip all openings from your home to the outside.  Eliminating air leaks can save you as much as 10% in energy costs!
  • Replace your old refridgerator with a new, more efficient model and save 3 or 4 times the energy!

Not only do these thing save energy, they save you money!

We wrote this post after attending an informational luncheon on behalf of Silver Spring Networks and Mom Central Consulting and received a gift bag and gift card as a thank you for taking the time to participate

Are You Naughty Or Nice to Your Skin? Eucerin Skin First Update (with Giveaway)

by Kate on December 21st, 2010  |  5 Comments  |  Giveaways

No matter where you live, the weather changes (at least a bit) season to season and your skin care regime should change with it.  December’s Skin FIRST Movement Update is about keeping the cold winter weather from hurting your skin – as well as treating the inevitable dry skin patch.

Skin Care Naughty or Nice List

So would you be put on Santa’s skin care “naughty” or “nice” list based on your current habits? Here are some tips to help you get on the “nice” list and stay there:

Nice:

  • Wear gloves in the winter to protect your hands against environmental elements.
  • When washing the dishes or doing laundry, protect your skin with protective gloves, shielding your hands from chemicals and excess water.

Naughty:

  • Do you use daily moisturizer for your dry, itchy skin? If you don’t, frequent scratching could lead to skin irritation and possibly infection, and no one wants to feel uncomfortable around the holidays. Be sure to use an oil-based moisturizer during the Winter to keep skin moisturized such as Eucerin Original or Eucerin Plus lotions.
  • Now that summer is gone, do you decrease the amount of times you exfoliate? In the cold winter months, you should actually increase exfoliation.
  • What type of cleanser do you use? Many soaps are alkaline, which can be irritating to unhealthy skin and lead to a condition called alkali eczema, resulting in itching, redness, small bumps and flaking. To reduce their drying properties, many soaps contain added fats like lanolin and paraffin and/or lactic or citric acid – so always look at the label before you buy! Soap free cleansers like Eucerin Calming Body Wash are great for this time of year and the Eucerin Calming Crème can be used to break the itch/scratch cycle.

Be Nice to Your Skin

This month’s prize package might be my favorite so far. I have been using the products myself for a couple weeks and I LOVE them. I absolutely LOVE a thick lotion in the winter and the Eucerin Dry Skin Therapy Calming Creme is just that. It’s so soothing to put on and has really helped me avoid yucky itchy winter skin. The other Eucerin product in the Prize Package, the Eucerin Calming Body Wash Daily Shower Oil is unlike any wash I’ve ever used. It looks like body oil, goes on your skin like oil, but forms a light lather when you rub it into your skin. It has a nice, subdued scent and is really refreshing and soothing.

Shop! The Eucerin Dry Skin Therapy Calming Creme is $23 for 2 14-ounce tubes. Eucerin Calming Body Wash Daily Shower Oil ($24 for 3 8-ounce bottles).

Win! A Skin Bath Set from Eucerin!

Prize details: Set includes, Eucerin Calming Creme, Calming Body Wash, a bath sponge, bath gloves and pumice stone.

How to Enter: Are you on Santa’s skin care “naughty” or “nice” list? Watch this Eucerin video to learn how to protect your skin during the cold winter months. What is something new you learned from the video?

Bonus Entries – valid only after completing the first required entry. Please leave a separate comment for each you do.

Giveaway ends January 5 – open to US residents.

Disclosure: Thanks to Eucerin for providing me with a goody bag and one for the giveaway prizes. Others may have a different experience. Opinions are my own.
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