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Are you creating good childhood memories with your children?

Whether this is an "affirmation" post, a "reminder" post, or both, depends upon you. If you are reading to your children on a regular basis, then good job.  This is an affirmation post.  You know that you are doing wondering things for both you and your child/children when you take the time to read to them. If you need a gentle nudge because reading books has gotten put on the back burner, then this is your reminder of how important it is to read to your children. As the message above says (well, kind of anyway), sometimes it's less important what families read together than the fact that you are spending that "quality" time with them and creating some great memories.  My three children, who are all adults now, have so many memories of all the times we spen reading together when they were little.  The fact that the memories are good means that they were obviously enjoying themselves at the same time that we were creating bonds between us. However, we also know that the benefits of … [Read more...]

Vitamin D Benefits

Are You and Your Family Lacking in Vitamin D? The answer is probably "YES", unless you live in a year-round sunny climate. Living in Minnesota/North Dakota, we are obviously not included in the above group, where it gets so so exceptionally cold for many months of the year.  Some days you can’t stay outside for more than a few minutes. Even then, we may be so bundled up that the only body parts we are exposing might be our eyeballs. You can actually draw a line horizontally across the middle of the United States and EVERY state above that line has significantly more cases of everything from depression, anxiety, MS,  Alzheimers, dementia, cancer, heart issues and overall mortality!  How do I check my vitamin D levels? Periodic blood tests are probably the most accurate way to check  your level of vitamin D.  According to the Institute of Medicine, blood volume ( ranging from 0-100 percent),  30  and below is associated with severe vitamin D deficiency.  Levels between … [Read more...]

Ella the Doggy Activity Book For Kids Just Released!

Ella's Activity Book for kids is available now! You can be among the first to get Ella's new activity book...! What's Inside:                                     Mazes             Word Finds            Crossword Puzzles          Coloring Pages            Word Scrambles          And more!  Hours and hours of fun for your family This activity book is based on the "Ella the Doggy" book series. You do not need to have the books to do the activities. However... having the books makes the activities in the book even more enjoyable because children are entertained by looking for the answers in the book.  Since "Ella the Doggy" books are designed to be read to the child around 2-5 years of age, we wanted to give older children a way to enjoy Ella too....  Hence, "Ella the Doggy Activity Book!" Those old enough to read (adults included) can either do the activities on their own or help a younger child complete them. Entertaining and Educational The … [Read more...]

Stress Management for Parents

Do you feel like this sometimes?  Wound up so tight that you feel like you are going to both literally and figuratively snap? Stress management for parents can be critical. We may hate to admit that we don't always love parenting and that our children bug us sometimes.  Even if you are usually very happy in your parenting role, sometimes we just need to take a minute and realize we need to do something (or get rid of something) to actively counteract stress. Parenting is a hard job and sometimes we become overwhelmed by the challenges we face.  If a happy home for your family is important to you,  you will find a way to face those challenges.  Try some of the suggestions below: Don't put your kids to bed late and hope they will sleep later the next morning. That does not always work and you  usually end up with a child that wakes up at the normal time, who is cranky for the entire day. Instill thankfulness and gratitude in your children. Be sure they thank people who help … [Read more...]

Why Reading to Children Helps with Literacy

Reading to your children Plays a Huge Role in their Literacy Level You probably know that research shows that the early years involve the highest rates of learning, and the habits formed at a young age will stay with them for a lifetime.  Therefore, it's a perfect time to introduce children to books which educate and inform throughout life.  Children are never too young to enjoy books (including newborns), and it's not just about reading the words.  It's also about enjoying the interaction with parents as the child sits with them and enjoys the time spent together.  Just hearing a parent's voice can be a great comfort.You can't possibly start reading to your child "too soon," including your newborn. Children of any age can benefit from experiencing books on a day to day basis, each and every day.  A good selection of quality children's books is a very important part of the whole literacy process. Reading to Babies Bedtime stories are a great way to help send babies off to … [Read more...]

Can Effective Teaching Strategies Include Comics For Kids?

Can Comics for Kids be One of Several Effective Teaching Strategies? Comics are just one more avenue where readers can use context and picture clues, to teach them how to read and write.  Comic books are a fun way to engage children in reading.  For struggling readers, comic books can be an extra good resource because they are usually shorter than many  books, so they aren't as overwhelming.  Also, the visuals help readers to more easily understand what is happening in the story. Sometimes just getting children to read in the first place can be a challenge.  Comic books can be one of several effective reading comprehension strategies.  They can help get kids interested in reading and hopefully they will progress from there. I have to think that if the reader enjoys the comic book format, he/she will definitely learn to be a better reader and writer.  It just makes sense.  The more you enjoy something, the more you do it, the more you learn from it. Comics Used as Primary … [Read more...]

Looking for Free Books online this Fall?

If you need FREE books on Kindle for the kids, "Doggy loves Autumn" is probably just the book you are looking for! In this book, the second in the "Ella the Doggy" book series, you and the children can follow along with Ella the Doggy, as she keeps busy during the Fall season! Fall Outdoor Activities Ella is having lots of fun as the weather cools down in Minnesota. While on her walks outside, she notices lots of changes in the colors... and she keeps busy snacking on foods from the garden! Indoor Activities Inside the house, there is even more action as Ella sees her people family celebrating Halloween... and Thanksgiving! As a reminder, the following are some of the benefits of reading to children: Improved speech and language development Children learn how to pronounce new words Vocabulary expansion Children tend to do better in school Helps build a life long interest in reading Children learn how to listen Helps children grasp grammar and … [Read more...]

Free Kindle Books about Dogs

I did a little digging today and found over ten free Kindle books at Amazon - and they are all about Dogs! I am not vouching for any of them, as I have not read them.  However... since they are FREE, you can't go wrong, even if you download them all.  If you don't care for them, you can just delete them! These books were all free today.  However, I cannot say how long they will remain that way, so you may want to download them now before you forget.   Save for a "rainy day" and load them up for your family's entertainment as you get time to read them. Here are the books with direct links to the pages where you can download these FREE Kindle books: "Mommy Can I Have a Puppy?" "Good Dog, Bad Dog" "Dog Aliens" "Mr. Brown Dog" "A Dog's Tale" "Me Talk Funny" "Rescue Dogs, Fire-fighting Heroes and Science Facts "Shep Dreams of Home" "PeeWee the Playful Puppy" "Time to Go" "Beautiful Joe - an Autobiography of a Dog" Something to note:  When you visit the link, the price … [Read more...]