Kidlings

All things related to children

Things To Keep The Little Ones Busy

October 15, 2008 – 12:10 pm

Looking for something to keep your kids, grandkids, neighbors’ kids, or maybe even your retired husband occupied for a little while?  Try the following:

Take refrigerated sugar cookie dough.  Roll it out on a floured board and cut shapes with cookie cutters.  The bigger the better. 

Separate four eggs.  Put one yolk in a small disposable cup.  At a few drops of food coloring and stir into the egg yolks.  Use a clean, craft paint brush and let the kids (or husband) paint their raw cookie any way they want with the colored egg yolks.

Bake cookies according to package instructions.  The cookies will look like stain glass.

While the cookies are baking and cooling, make Ziploc ice cream.

Fill a gallon-size Ziploc bag half full with ice.  Sprinkle 6 T. rock salt over the ice.  Seal bag and set aside.  In a pint-size Ziploc bag put 1/2 cup milk or half & half, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 tablespoon sugar.  Seal it tightly.  Set the small bag inside the big one and reseal it tightly.

Let the kids shake until the mixture is ice cream, which takes about 5 minutes.  Eat ice cream with freshly-baked cookies.

Enjoy!

Diva Dolores

By DivaDolores | Also posted in Fun & Fame, Kitchen & Recipes | Comments (3)

CODE WORD? WHO NEEDS A CODE WORD?

August 28, 2008 – 12:31 pm

What is a Code Word?  Who needs one?  Why?

A code word is any word or short phrase that you choose and share with someone else to signal them that everything is not okay.  You’re not okay.  You need help–and you need help now.

Who needs one?

Everyone.

We often think that it is only children who need a code word.  When my children were small, our code word was purple-people eater.  If ever I phoned to check on them, or they ran to me saying that phrase, I knew something was seriously wrong.  Every child needs a quick “help me” phrase that is known only to them and parents so that if they’re in a dangerous situation, the child can relay it quickly.  Likewise, a parent, if in a bad situation can cue a child that help is needed. Even a very young child can learn that if Mom or Dad says the code word, then the child should call 911.

It’s a simple thing, but it’s effective.  More than one child has warned a parent s/he was in jeopardy when s/he was in a situation and couldn’t just come out and say s/he was in jeopardy.  More than one has saved a parent by knowing what to do when s/he heard the parent use the code word.

Often kids in jeopardy are being intimidated into remaining silent.  But they know they can use the code word and the threat won’t realize that a secret message is being conveyed.  Help can be had.

But this simple little tool can be useful to adults, too.  Oh, we’ve all heard of going on blind dates and if we wanted to cut out, we’d use the code word and that would signal our friend that we were departing.  But there are other useful applications, too.

A few months ago, a woman was being abducted at gunpoint.  A friend saw her with her abductor, but had no idea anything was wrong.  The event didn’t end well for the woman.  The friend is grieving and suffering guilt because she didn’t know anything was wrong.  She feels she should have known, somehow been able to tell.

If these friends had a code word–one that they recognized as a signal, maybe things would have ended differently.  It’s no guarantee, but then the victim would have had a chance.

When you’re traveling or in groups or at places where you’re vulnerable, come up with a code word and share it with those you’re with.  Treat this seriously.  Because you never know when it will be.  When it can make the difference of getting help and being a victim.

Blessings,

Diva Vicki

By DivaVicki | Also posted in Heart & Soul, Travel | Comments (0)

Child Safety in Summer (Your Pets, too!)

June 20, 2008 – 9:59 am

Just a reminder now that the hot weather is fast approaching (or here already!) to use extra caution when it comes to your children and pets.

Every year, we hear the painful news about infants and toddlers suffering tragically and dying from hyperthermia in a hot car because they are forgotten in a closed vehicle in the heat. Up to 36 children annually. July usually has the highest death rate.

How does this happen? According to the website, Go San Angelo, the number of deaths has increased due the law requiring child safety seats to be put in the backseat of a car. Often, a parent or caretaker will forget a child is back there. The article goes on to say approximately 340 children have died in hot cars since the mid 1990s.

Jan Null has posted vital information about this topic on GGWeather.com. Here are some of the safety tips:

Never ever leave a child unattended in a vehicle. Not even to do a quick errand. Not because you left something in the house and have to run back in. Not for any reason. Not for second. Temperatures inside a hot vehicle soar quickly, often with deadly consequences.

Be sure that all occupants leave the vehicle when unloading. Don’t overlook sleeping babies. Make “look before you leave” a routine whenever you get out of the car, every time.

Prevent a child from climbing into your unoccupied hot car and then getting trapped inside by always locking your car when not in use; ensure children do not have access to keys or remote entry devices. If a child is missing, check the car first, including the trunk. Teach your children that vehicles are never to be used as a play area.

Keep a stuffed animal in the car seat and when the child is put in the seat, place the animal in the front with the driver. It serves as a reminder.

Place your purse or briefcase in the back seat as a reminder that you have your child in the car.

Have a plan that your childcare provider will call you if your child does not show up for school.

Please check out ggweather.com for more information so that we can all be sure that our children are kept save.

E. Panduro, a nurse in Florida, offers these tips:

If you do see a child in a hot car, call 911.

If you happen to get the child out of the vehicle before medics arrive, offer the child fluids, get him to a cool place, and cool him down with a cool cloth (using what you have).

Watch for signs of stress (i.e., dehydration, hyperthermia) such as dizziness, headaches, lethargy, difficulty breathing, pulse that seems too fast or too slow. Relay those to the medics, or to the ER staff, if you go.

Prevention is key.

While we’re on subject of safety, never leave a child unattended near water. From a half-full mop-bucket of water on your kitchen floor, to the bathtub, to a lake, ocean, or pool. Drowning happens in a moment, while your back is turned for just a second, and it happens in dead silence.

Pet Safety

The same goes for your pets, too. Leaving a pet in a hot car is cruel, even with the car’s window opened a crack, parked in the shade. This is still not an option. It’s torture for your pet.

Take care of your pets in the heat. Provide plenty of water and shade. And if you take your dog for a walk, pay attention to the pavement. Pavement gets scalding hot in the heat of the day, under the hot sun. If the sidewalk, street, or pavement is too hot for your bare feet and will burn you, then it’s too hot for your pet’s feet as well.

Have a wonderful, safe summer! –Diva Kimbling

Related News Stories

Child Rescued from Hot Car

Nancy Grace Transcript: Two Children Die in a Hot Car

…When Kids Die in Hot Cars

By DivaKimberly | Also posted in Heart & Soul, Pets, Well-being & Fitness | Comments (1)

What’s Love Got to Do With Kids?

November 17, 2007 – 7:51 am

Everything!  I’ve long believed that children who are grounded in their parents’ unconditional love and guidance grow to become more successful and healthier adults.  It’s a deep-seated belief that I’ve practiced on my own children, requiring that they be present for family meals.  Since they aren’t quite “grown” yet (the photo below is of them when they were younger), the final results are still out, but both are honor students and neither have given me any serious cause for alarm.  How many mothers of teenagers can say that?

KCKids

Now I’ve come across some scientific evidence to back up my contention. The Harvard Mastery of Stress Study, originally started in the 1950’s, was intended to study what factors could be predictive of stress.  Over 120 male Harvard undergraduates took part in the original study and follow ups have been made through the years.  In 1993, Dr. Linda Russek and Dr. Gary E. Schwartz studied 28 of the questions from the study (relating to family love) and met with a number of the men from the original study.  After much computer computation and analysis, they came to the conclusion that the men’s current physical health was more predictive from their relationship with their parents than from other predictors.  What this means?  Your children will be healthier if they perceive strong parental love.  Here’s a link to a write-up on this study:  Bill Stratton’s Article 

 

 

While I was considering this article, Parade Magazine arrived in my November 11, 2007 Sunday newspaper.  An article THE TRUTH ABOUT FAMILY DINNERS caught my eye.  The upshot of the article is that family meals lead to more successful relationships and how well they do in school.  The article sites a study from the University of Minnesota that reported students who ate regularly with their parents had better grades and were less depressed.  Another study was sited from Harvard showing that students who eat family meals are less likely to be overweight (by 15%).  An Emory University study indicates that parents who tell family stories during these family meals are helping their preteens with self-esteem and better relationships.  The reverse appears to be accurate as well — a Columbia University study shows that teens who have fewer family meals are more likely to smoke, drink and make friends with other kids who are sexually active.  The chairman and president of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse is quoted as saying, “Parental engagement is a critical weapon in the fight against substance abuse.  If I could wave a wand, I’d make everyone have family dinners.”

 

 

The upshot for me is strong parental love, guidance and sitting down with your kids at mealtime is extremely important.  Life’s busy, but your kids’ well being is more important!

By DivaKC | Also posted in Heart & Soul, Well-being & Fitness | Comments (0)

Family: Demonstrating Newly Acquired Skills

October 11, 2007 – 2:51 pm

Let ‘em scale Mount Everest. We’re accomplishing serious feats right here. With minimal instruction, my firstborn granddaughter (3) has learned to spit!!!

Unfortunately, she did so in her mom’s face.

Ouch. Seriously busted. Time out.

(Mmm, Gran’s note to self: Regarding demonstrations of newly acquired skills. Remember to tell all the other grandchildren to turn their heads before showing mom…)

(Mmm, Gran’s 2nd note to self: We need a bigger time-out chair; put that on Hubby’s To-Do List. I barely fit.)

vic sig file

By DivaVicki | Also posted in Fun & Fame, Heart & Soul | Comments (2)