Spy Kids in Action!

SPY KIDS: All the Time in the World is a rollicking adventure movie that brings with it new gags, new gadgets and thrilling action for the kids to enjoy. It features two cute and cool spy girls from the Wilson family – Spy Kid Rebecca and Spy Kid Baby – with Mom Marissa (Jessica Alba) along on a mission to catch the “Timekeeper”, an insane time-stealing villain!

This new generation of Spy Kids uses new hi-tech spy gear to take out swarms of enemies and catch the nefarious Timekeeper. Amidst the thrilling action, Spy Kid Rebecca maintains a prim and proper hairstyle that never fails to highlight her unique beauty.

Let your daughter step into the shoes of Spy Kid Rebecca and have a grand adventure outdoors! Get a similar look with a pretty and gorgeous hairstyle by using Hair Clippy’s Clipettes Dots.

Clipette Dots

This perfect-for-playtime clip has a non-slip grip that stays on; so you don’t have to worry about it ever slipping out!

Elsewhere, Spy Marissa and the absolutely adorable Spy Kid Baby (Belle Solorzano) are fighting crime.  This super-cool spy mom is a member of the Organization of Super Spies, the world’s top spy agency.  Spy Kid Baby sports a clip-over-the-top hairstyle that holds her hair neatly to one side, with a distinctive handful of hair worn up in a bunch - perfect for a cool spy kid baby in action!

Adorn your baby with an all-action hairstyle using hair clips from No Slippy Hair Clippy. Go for a high ponytail and clip it snugly and comfortably with Hair Clippy’s Charlotte hair clip:

Charlotte

The Charlotte hair clip comes with a plush velvet flower with a gemstone center. You can choose from several colors to match your baby’s outdoor outfit — black, light blue, olive, lavender, shocking pink, red, white, pink, and navy.

There are plenty of cool and adventurous choices of hair accessories for you to choose from at the No Slippy Hair Clippy store. Have a good look around, stay active, enjoy the ride, and the movie!

Helping Kids Appreciate What They Have

Did you know that on average, kids are exposed to 360, 000 ads by the time they graduate from high school? Yikes!

It’s no wonder they are always under tremendous pressure and influence to get their hands on all the newest fashion staples: the most stylish clothes, the hippest shoes, the trendiest hair accessories. In turn, parents feel the tremendous pressure to buy those things for them!

As most parents know all too well, sometimes it’s easier to just give in to what our children want than have to battle with them why they can’t have what they want. Yet on the other side, we also know that getting our children everything they want is not a good idea either. It's our job to help them understand why that's so.

The key is to help them appreciate what they already have… sounds so simple, but it’s no way simple when kids are directly targeted daily by media, even toddlers!

Try your best to make them understand how fortunate they are on a global level. Show them examples in your own community of people who may not be as fortunate as they are. If there are opportunities in your community for them to participate in programs to help the homeless, by serving meals for example, encourage them to join. Nothing beats a first-hand experience. Your kids will come back with a better idea of how less fortunate people live.

Such experiences will not only help them appreciate what they have, but it will help foster in them a sense of social responsibility. It will be very beneficial to them and to the world around them if they can begin learning at an early age to appreciate what they have and to share when they can, and give back.

Teaching Your Kids about Savings

Young children don’t usually grasp the general concept of money until somewhere between the age of 3 and 4. So they expect to get whatever captures their fancy and expect you to get it for them, like picking fruit from a tree. It’s there, and I want it, so pick it for me mom!

But you can begin teaching your kids early on the value of a dollar and the importance of saving money. According to WC Randall of Edward Jones Investment, take your next bank visit as an opportunity to teach them the concepts of a bank and what you are doing with your money. Make things simple. Take the following short explanation as an example:

The nice people that you are giving the money to are called “tellers.” Then when you give the money, tell them that this is called a “deposit.” The money you are depositing to the teller is placed in a “checking account” or a “savings account” to keep it safe. This is so that mommy doesn’t have to carry a lot of money with her all the time.

Explain to them that the money that stays in the savings account earns interest and becomes more money. Mommy’s plan for how to save and spend that money is called a “budget.” Tell them that if you follow this budget, you can be sure that there is enough money for you to use on things you need to buy and pay for. If you save more, it means you can possibly afford more in the future, like splurging a little on your budding fashionista’s No Slippy Hair Clippy collection!

It might not be easy for kids to grasp right away, but it will be helpful for them to become familiar with the words that are commonly used:

Deposit- to put money into an account
Withdrawal - to take money out of an account
Teller - the person who takes deposits and withdrawals
Savings Account - an account where money is left to accumulate interest and grow
Interest - the money earned by the money in a savings account
Checking Account - an account where money is deposited and that checks draw from
Budget - a plan for saving and spending money

Top 10 Summer Travel Tips

Summer offers so many opportunities to go out and enjoy the world! But traveling with the kiddos can be tricky and sometimes even downright impossible. Here are ten tips from Breezy Mama on how you can make your summer road trips as smooth sailing as possible. These were compiled from Colleen Lanin of TravelMamas.com:

TOP 10 TRAVEL TIPS FOR PARENTS

10. Print a packing list
I used to wrack my brain writing out every little thing I didn’t want to forget before each trip with the kids. It finally occurred to me to save the list and simply modify it for each trip. I have been perfecting that packing list ever since I became a mom five years ago.

9. Keep a separate stash of toys and books for travel.
Sure, a new diversion or two is always fun. But a hidden toy is a forgotten toy. Kids will be psyched to rediscover old favorites on the go, saving you money and effort.

8. Never, ever count on feeding your children food provided on an airplane.
A three-hour delay on the tarmac could easily thwart your plans. Instead, bring plenty of healthy snacks. A steady stream of sliced and dried fruits, whole grain crackers, and pretzels keep kids busy munching instead of fighting or whining. Throw in a few forbidden treats as a reward for good behavior too!

7. Be a hypochondriac.
I keep a zipper-lock bag of every sort of medicine and ointment our family just might need while away from home. This is especially handy when traveling to a foreign country or when embarking on a cruise, where getting familiar medications might be difficult. Even when traveling somewhere close-by where you could easily purchase some teething tablets or cough syrup, do you WANT to run out in the middle of the night in a strange town chasing down something you could have easily packed?

6. Hitting the road? Don’t forget the bucket!
You never know when car sickness will strike and if it does, you need to be prepared. Bring along a bucket (a sand pail will do) or snag an air sickness bag to stow in your car. I learned this one the hard way, people.

Read on about the top 5 tips on Breezy Mama here! Have a (hopefully) sunny adventure!

Image from babble.com.

V-Day with the Kiddos

Spend this day of hearts with the ones you love most (although sometimes they make it a bit challenging): your kids! Celebrate Valentine's Day by whipping up some sweet treats together!

In allrecipes.com there are loads of kid-friendly recipes that don't only look good, we bet they all taste real good too! We loved this one:

CHOCOLATE CHIP BANANA MUFFINS

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Ready in: 35 minutes
Servings: 16

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
2. In another bowl, combine the egg, oil, yogurt and vanilla. Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.
3. Fold in bananas and chocolate chips.
4. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees F for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the muffins comes out clean.
5. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Have a sweet day! :)

Image from allrecipes.com.

Kids in the Kitchen

Curiosity never fails to get the better of kids! They just HAVE to try doing everything. Don't let that wonderful energy go to waste. Ask them to help you out in the kitchen with super fun and super easy recipes.

One, it's a perfect opportunity for some mom-and-kids bonding time. Two, you can watch them like a hawk because they are working right there with you. Three, this can hopefully "train" them to think that helping out is actually fun and not a boring chore (1000 points for you!)

I found a site called MomsWhoThink where you can find a treasure trove of easy-to-do recipes. Check out the section for Kids Recipes and choose from a long list of awesome recipes that you and your kids can do!

These are just two of my favorites:

Volcanoes in the Microwave

Ingredients:
4 teaspoons peanut butter
4 large marshmallows
red sprinkles
whipped cream

Directions:
1. Cut a hole in the middle of each of the marshmallows. Fill each with 1 teaspoon of peanut butter. Pour sprinkles on top.
2. Place marshmallows on a microwave-safe plate and microwave for 50 seconds, watching the "volcanoes" erupt.
3. Put a circle of whipped cream on the outside of the plate. Serve.

Octopus Dogs

Ingredients:
6 hot dog buns
6 hot dogs
1 can chili

Directions:
1. About 1-inch from one end of a hot dog, start a slit that goes vertically to the other end.
2. Turn a quarter turn and make another slit. Keep making slits until you have eight "tentacles" for the hot dog.
3. Boil and the hot dog will look like an octopus. Serve with the head up and the tentacles spread out over an open hot dog bun that has chili on it.

Check out other fun recipes here!

Girls Just Want to Have Fun...

Ahh the week after Christmas... You are either too bloated with that Christmas dinner (or dinners, if you're very friendly!) to get out of bed, not-so-bloated and on your way to your post Christmas celebrations, thrilled with the gifts you received, disappointed with the gifts you received, glad it's over, sad it's over... Whatever mood you are in right now, I know that after all that hustle and bustle leading up to Christmas day, you deserve a little break!

As you contemplate the remaining days of this fabulous year, here's something fun you can do. I found a really cool site called girlsgogames.com that's chockfull of games that girls (or girls-at-heart!) would enjoy. You can choose from adventure games, makeover games, dress up games, puzzle games... All short, simple and sweet but a whole lot of fun!

My current favorite is called The Devilish Hairdresser, where you get to play a rather naughty hairstylist (oh come on, girly games don't always have to be so girly!) Just be careful that the Angelic Hairstylist doesn't catch you messing up any hairdos! Good for laughs!

Think you can make the cut? Click here!

Funny Kid Quotes

Kids say the silliest, funniest things, don’t they? I believe that one of the many perks of being a parent is the entertainment that kids provide when they innocently attempt to understand the world around them. Ever wondered how their little minds understand LOVE? Here are some quotes that cracked me up and made me go awww:


What is love?

"I think you're supposed to get shot with an arrow or something, but the rest of it isn't supposed to be so painful."

"Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good too."

"A man and a woman promise to go through sickness and illness and diseases together."

"I'm not rushing into being in love. I'm finding fourth grade hard enough."


About kissing

"When a person gets kissed for the first time, they fall down, and they don't get up for at least an hour."

"If it's your mother, you can kiss her anytime. But if it's a new person, you have to ask permission."


When they see lovers

"Romantic adults usually are all dressed up, so if they are just wearing jeans it might mean they used to go out or they just broke up."


How to make people fall in love with you

"Tell them that you own a whole bunch of candy stores."

"Yell out that you love them at the top of your lungs. And don't worry if their parents are right there."


The best age to get married

"Twenty three is the best age because you know the person forever by then."