by admin -

Cavity Free Kids

Today we had our six month dental appointments, and once again we had five cavity free kids. The dentist is always pleasantly surprised when all five kids pass inspection.

I am not guaranteeing your children will be cavity free if you use my ideas, but it has worked for our family.

  1. No soda! Soda is beyond a special treat at our house, it is almost unheard of. Soda has absolutely no health benefits so why introduce it to your children. I had no cavities until I became a soda drinker.
  2. No juice. I rarely purchase juice, although my children do love it. My little ones never have juice in a sippy cup or bottle. When you are old enough to drink out of a real cup you can have juice, about 4 times a year.
  3. No gummies, fruit roll-ups, hard candy, and other sticky sweets. I don’t buy them so they don’t eat them. They stick to your children’s teeth and are very difficult for little kids to brush away.
  4. Cool toothbrushes. This might sound silly but kids really do like to brush more often with the help of Hello Kitty or a Power Ranger.
  5. Toothpaste they like. Before I would purchase toothpaste that was the least expensive, and sometimes the kids hated the flavor. While I can find their favorites on sale most of the time I will pay full price if necessary, it’s cheaper than a filling.
  6. Supervision. Kids need help brushing their teeth. Some kids can brush on their own at a young age, but others need help for much longer.
  7. Reminders. Every morning before school starts they are reminded to brush their teeth after breakfast. If I didn’t remind them sometimes they would forget.
  8. Incentive. This may not work for your family or budget but we pay our kids to stay cavity free. For every cavity free visit they are paid $10. This is a lot of money to a six year old. A filling costs us about $35 dollars per tooth, so they are rewarded for being diligent in their brushing.

So far our dental visits have been uneventful and profitable for our children. They like going to the dentist and are working hard to earn their $10 stay cavity free.

 

by admin -

How Many Kids is Enough?

I am on vacation, but thought it would be fun to have a little Q & A with my readers.

My first question comes from long time reader Lawanda:

“How’d you talk your dh into having so many kids? Mine won’t budge! LOL”

Well Lawanda, you might be better off to ask my husband how he convinced me to have so many kids! In the beginning I wanted one maybe two, but probably just one. Over time my heart changed and I now see children as a blessing rather than a burden.

It is not my goal to try and convince people that six kids are better than two, or that everyone should have a million kids. I do know that having a big family is fun and not as expensive as most people think. Kids are as expensive as you let them be.

I don’t think having a big family makes you a better mother or a better Christian for that matter. It saddens me though, that when it comes to the question of family size, too often it is a question of finances rather than faith.

I could say more about this subject, but I feel it has been addressed over and over, by many people more qualified than me. I do think Octamom has written a great post titled, “Is Eight Enough?” She sums up most of my feelings on the subject in her post, so she can have the last word on this one.

Feel free to discuss family size in the comments section, but keep it friendly.

by admin -

Christmas Shopping for Kids

Every year I face the same dilemma, my kids (who are normally broke) want to buy Christmas presents for their siblings. My dilemma is two-fold, one I don’t like the idea of giving the kids money to purchase gifts, I think they should earn the money. Second, I hate extremely dislike standing in the dollar store with 5 kids trying to help them pick out Christmas gifts for each other.

This year I had an idea. For several years we had a points store at our home where the kids could pick out prizes based on completed school work, good behavior, etc… After mulling over my Christmas quandary, I thought, why not create a Christmas store? I sort through my gift stash and do a little extra shopping then create a “store” in my bedroom. The kids will all have the opportunity to visit the store a few days before Christmas and purchase gifts for one another.

The only problem that remained was the money, so I decided to create a Christmas job chart. Each child’s jobs are color coded with dollar amounts next to them. When they complete a job they are paid immediately with Christmas dollars. The dollars are put into a Merry Money jar and on December 23rd they can go shopping at Mom’s Christmas Store.

I am thrilled to see my kids trying to find more ways to earn money so they can buy more gifts for their siblings. I am also thrilled that many of my household projects are getting done thanks to my new commission system. For my little kids, their jobs are ones that they would normally not be paid for, collecting laundry, picking up, etc, because I had trouble finding big projects that they were capable of doing. But my big kids have tackled some lingering household projects. So far my dishwasher, fridge, stove and microwave have been cleaned out, my couch has been vacuumed, my coupons sorted, walls washed, laundry done, and plants watered. I don’t even have to ask them to do the jobs.

If you are interested in using this idea for your kids here are a few tips. Pay kids for jobs completed immediately. This is especially important for little kids who thrive on instant gratification. Use clear jars to store the money so the kids are able to see their earnings and are motivated to do more.  Make jobs age appropriate. There is no reason to give a 14 year old a dollar for unloading the dishwasher or ask a 3 year old to clean the stove. When stocking your “store” price items clearly. My little kids don’t understand the concept of money too well but they are able to count. Items in the “store” will all be priced at an even dollar amount. The child will be able to count out how many dollars they need to purchase an item. There is no tax and no change. (We can save that lesson for another time)

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The Merry Money jars are filling up, my house is getting cleaner and I have avoided taking six kids Christmas shopping!

For more Works for Me Wednesday visit Rocks in My Dryer.

by admin -

Christmas Must-Haves

I thought it would be fun throughout the month of December to share some of my favorite Christmas “must-haves” with you all.
My first Christmas pick is a CD. My family loves music and I am always trying to find kid appropriate music that isn’t annoying to adults. A few years ago my sister-in-law sent us this CD and it has been a favorite ever since.

Go Fish Snow is a catchy upbeat Christmas album, that doesn’t dilute the true meaning of Christmas. I think the cd is about $10 and would be a great gift for your family.

Here is one of the songs off their Christmas album, enjoy!

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiH2sdH_S3I]

note: I have not been compensated in any way for this post.

by admin -

Christmas Toy List

Shannon is hosting a fun themed WFMW this week. She has asked for readers to recommend their favorite, time tested toys. With six kids we have had a lot of toys come and go through the years, and we have found some tried and true, loved by everyone favorites.

Plastic Army Men Military Playset

I bought a box of army men on clearance for $2.50 after Christmas one year. We take them when we travel and the kids always have something to play with. If we lose a few or they break I don’t care because they were so cheap.
Playing with the Army men during our recent camping trip.
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Playmobil

My only regret with Playmobil is that I didn’t find out about it sooner. My kids love this stuff and there are so many products in different price ranges it is a perfect gift for anyone to give to the kids.

Fractiles

My kids love pattern blocks of all kinds. I particularly like this kind because it is magnetic, and I like all things magnetic. You can take them anywhere and kids of all ages (except those that still put things in their mouths) love them.

Snap Circuits Jr. SC-100

If you can only afford to buy one toy this year, buy snap circuits. We purchased this for my son when he was 9 years old. He loved it, his younger brothers loved it, his sisters loved it and three years later he still plays with it. It is also educational, which is a big plus!

Sculpey

Sculpey clay hardens so kids can make items to keep. My girls like to make dolls and beads (which can be used for necklaces), while the boys make boy stuff, snakes, dragons, and guns.

Melissa & Doug Magnetic Dress-Up

I have several versions of this toy and they are all well loved in our house. My 2 and 4 year old girl will play with this for 30 to 45 minutes without getting up. I like this one because, once again it is a great toy to take on a trip as well as play with at the table.

Toy Food

We still have toy food from when my 14 year old was a toddler. These toys (even the cheap ones) last forever and are enjoyed by my children starting with the time they can walk.

Knifty Knitter

I bought this for my 13 year old daughter last Christmas. She has learned how to knit using the knifty knitter and has made several hats, scarves and other items. It is a great beginner step into the world of crafting.

We don’t give a lot of toys for Christmas. I feel like we have too many already and with all the moving we do, it is hard to find space for everything in each house. I like to give consumable gifts to my kids such as paper, markers, crayons, paints, and other craft items that they can use up and eventually throw away.

Several months ago I wrote a few posts recommending toys and books for specific age groups. You can click on the links to get more ideas.

Toys and Books for Preschoolers

Terrific Book Series for Kids

Favorite Books for Little Girls

Favorite Books for Little Boys

by admin -

Flexibility

Earlier I wrote a post, on my other blog, about spending quality time with the kids this week. I determined that this week I would focus on playing games with my kids since it is an activity we all enjoy. This morning after we ate breakfast and dressed I was ready to challenge my two year old to a game of Bingo. She had other plans. My three little kids really wanted to play blocks/ army men. My old self would have insisted that this was game week and we needed to play games.

I quickly realized that the point of this challenge was not to spend time with my kids in a boot camp fashion. If the kids want to play blocks all day, that is fine. We don’t have to play games. It wouldn’t be fun to force my kids to play a game in order to spend time with me. That defeats the purpose!

So this week, if your children want to take a detour, let them. Summer will soon be over and schedules will abound. Relax and have fun with your kids this week!

See, I really am flexible! I am building a tower for the army men with my legs crossed!

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