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Smart Money Smart Kids: Dave & Rachel’s New Book

April 5, 2014 by Danielle

I received a free digital copy of this book to facilitate this review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Guys I’m So. Dang. Excited! I’m part of the launch team for Dave Ramsey & Rachel Cruze’s (his daughter) new book: Smart Money Smart Kids. Now that I’ve read the entire thing (and am preparing to re-read it), I have to admit I don’t even know where to START in telling you guys about it! Seriously, there is so much amazing info in it for raising your kids to be smart with money, have a grateful heart, and basically prepare them for a successful future! The best way to begin something is just to begin, right? I think this ‘beginning’ should be mine and Hubby’s not-so-great financial history. So let’s just dive right in, shall we?

First of all, I’ve been a huge fan of Dave’s for awhile now. After reading his Total Money Makeover book, it completely changed how Hubby and I view our financial situation. Up until that point, however, our financial knowledge was very VERY limited. Starting our family while still in college, we used that as an excuse to rack up substantial student loans to cover our education and many living expenses. We also didn’t think much about going on several family vacations. Add to that our attempts at starting a large business that completely failed and lead us to bankruptcy…..ya, our financial situation was beyond critical.

After reading the Total Money Makeover about two years ago, we decided to turn our lives around completely. We started by moving to an area (and different state) where there was much more job potential (and a lot better pay) than where we were stuck in Utah. By doing so, we tripled Hubby’s annual salary. I have yet to figure out how we got by before….a mixture of amazing family support and the grace of heaven, probably!

We have now been working as hard as possible to get rid of our debt, which currently sits at an appalling $105,000 NOT including our home! The majority is student loans, then there’s one auto loan, a little credit card debt, and a chunk that we owe our parents (for daycare and such help while we were in school). This is not chump change, guys! We’re throwing as much as we can at this debt, and making many sacrifices along the way. No cable (not really a sacrifice), driving as infrequently as possible to save on gas and repairs, keeping a close eye on our utilities and groceries (see the 15+ Best Grocery Budgeting Tips Ever), and trying to avoid ‘extra’ stuff such as eating out and toys/games/etc. It’s a long process, but we’re determined to pull this off!

Now, I’ll be perfectly honest with you all: Hubby makes a pretty decent salary. Growing up, I never would’ve thought my family would have this income with just ONE spouse working. But think about it….this nice salary is going mostly to DEBT! To things that are in the past, instead of things we could enjoy now or save for in the future. Depressing, right?!

This is NOT what I want for my kids, so I want to arm them with as much knowledge, experience and attitude as possible in financial wisdom. That’s where Smart Money Smart Kids comes in! Dave and Rachel break it down into very specific, age-appropriate levels. With lots of personal stories and a back-and-forth type narrative, this is so fun to read! What I love the best, though, is that these lessons not only teach kids how to be financial smart, but it helps build their entire character in a way they can TRULY succeed in their life!

Here’s some of the things they touch on:

Build the desire in your kids to WORK, not be lazy. This will help them in so many ways throughout their life. Work isn’t really a four letter word!!!
Money doesn’t grow on trees. Kids need to learn that it does have a limit, and when it’s gone, it’s gone.
Delayed gratification: learn to save! Set age-appropriate goals, allow your child to work towards something. Imagine their sense of pride and accomplishment when they’ve EARNED something by working for it.
Do you think it’s easier to give away money that’s not really yours anyway? Of course it is! Teaching your children that everything is really God’s money anyway will help foster a giving heart….now THAT will go far in their lives!
When their old enough, teaching your child the importance and benefit of a budget is crucial. Starting the habit when their younger will make it second nature when they’re grown and have much more at stake. Help them tell their money where to go, not wonder where it went!
Debt IS a four letter word! Just like in our situation where it’s taking EXTRA work, sacrifice and lot of years of our lives to get rid of, debt can truly ruin your child’s future. Raising them to avoid it altogether can do amazing things for them. This is one of the best things you can teach your child!
Student loans: AVOID THEM! There’s so many other options, and even Hubby and I (thinking back) could have paid for our college a dozen better ways than the loans. We just didn’t realize, and didn’t care. If I gave ONE piece of advice to my sisters and children on finances….avoid student loans!

Really, there’s TONS in Smart Money Smart Kids that every parent should utilize with their children. Heck, they even cover the different types of family situations (divorced, step-families, special needs kids, etc.). Seriously, they cover EVERYTHING you need to set your kid up for success!

Smart Money Smart Kids is available for pre-order NOW…and comes out April 22nd! So do your kids and all the future generations a favor and go pre-order it RIGHT NOW. It could be the best purchase you ever make for your child’s future.

Heroes of the City App & Giveaway!

March 30, 2014 by Danielle

I was given a free full-version of this app to review, along with the items included in the giveaway. All opinions are my own.

I’m constantly on the lookout for good children’s apps. Not that my kids are on devices often, but when they are, I want it to be worth it. This Heroes of the City app proved to be just that!

When I’m looking for apps, there’s a few things I want: educational, fun, and variety. Along with that, something that my kids can actually DO without me ~~doing it for~~ helping them. The Heroes of the City app was ALL of that! The entire concept is based on little vehicles (cars, trains, etc.) that are alive and rescue/help around their city. For example, here’s Paulie the Police Car, or Harry Hot Rod.

Movies: There are HOURS of movies from Heroes of the City included in the app. So cute, fun and the kids really get into it! We found this especially helpful during small periods of time (doctor office wait) when we just need them to be STILL!

Games: Our 4-year-olds LOVED the games, and were able to do them mostly on their own. Green Lantern (age 2) needed more supervision, but Wonder Woman was more than happy to help, since the games were even intriguing for her! Their favorites were the memory game, one similar to Angry Birds where you shoot a crow from a canon trying to get it as far as you can without it hitting/bouncing off things, and a game of putting out fires in the City…..you can BE THE HERO OF THE CITY! There’s also drawing, puzzles, jump over obstacles and SO MUCH MORE!

My Hubby’s favorite aspect was that no matter what score the child gets, even if they ‘lose’, it does FIREWORKS. For the littlest kids that don’t understand scores, this is really rewarding for them and gets them excited to learn/play. It also does show the score/trophy earned, so for older kids like Wonder Woman, it motivates them to try again to bring up their score. Although the games are mostly for fun, most of them have a real learning aspect to them, such as strategy, to help the kids develop their minds.

To get this fun-filled app, just go to either the AppStore or GooglePlay

Want to win your OWN fun with Heroes of the City? Well, they’re giving one lucky winner a fun package! Not only will you get a DVD with about 5 episodes from the Heroes of the City show, but these fun things as well:

A fun-filled story book, which even has a ‘look and find’ section! The kids had a blast searching for their favorite characters in the book. Wonder Woman enjoyed reading the stories to them, so it was great for ALL our kiddos!

You’ll also receive TWO die cast metal figures of some characters from the app/show! We received Paulie (police car) and Harry (hot rod). They’re big enough for younger kids, but still nice and small-sized for easy play…..as you can tell the size in Superman’s hands…

One note, though: just on Harry Hot Rod, the main screw holding the bottom together wasn’t long enough to hold it. We simply replaced it with a little screw we had on-hand, and it was fantastic after that. It must have just been a faulty one, because Paulie the Police Car’s screw was just great. But as a heads-up, to avoid any choking hazards….watch for this screw if/when you first get it.

Enter now for you chance to win some fun things, and don’t forget to nab the app for some fun and educational time for the kiddos!

This Giveaway Has Ended

Tooth Fairy Box

February 1, 2014 by Danielle

Have your kids lost some baby teeth, yet? Are they in the process? My boys have yet to get into that phase, but are nearing it. Wonder Woman, on the other hand, has lost a LOT of her teeth. The record: 3 in one day!!! Ya, tough night for the tooth fairy’s wallet! Our puppy has even lost some teeth (the tooth fairy just leaves an extra doggy treat for those).

One problem we often find is actually LOSING the lost tooth…..like under the pillow. Or the gift from the tooth fairy. Or both! Frustrating for a little kid who’s been so excited. I’ve been looking for some system for holding the tooth and reward that’s cute, yet functional and RELIABLE. Oh, and budget-friendly, of course! These Tooth Fairy Boxes turned out so cute, and VERY helpful!

Tooth Fairy Box with Free Printable Poem / Busy Mom's Helper

When I was browsing (more like trampling through, since it was more chaotic than a mad house) the Christmas clearance at Michaels, I ran across these beauties:

Yup, cute little ‘gift card’ boxes. They called out to me, so I had to double check the price. After the clearance discount, they cost a whole $0.37! THIRTY-SEVEN CENTS!!! Heck ya, I’ll take that! So they went into my (overflowing) cart and on home with me. These were seriously PERFECT for my little tooth losing dilemma!

Supplies Needed

Boxes/Canisters

Scrapbook Paper

Double Sided Tape

Cute tooth fairy poem (below)

Directions

For mine, I didn’t cover the bottom of the boxes because 1: they’re plain silver, so no designs needed covering and 2: it makes it a VERY snug fit putting the lid on, and I didn’t want to deal with it. Call it laziness if you so desire; I call it maintaining my stress levels.

So first cut the scrapbook paper to fit over the top of the box and down the sides, to just above the little lip. Try not to go over the edge INTO the box, or it can be a snug (or impossible) fit putting the bottom back on.

I used double-sided tape along the edges to hold the paper down, plus a bit on the top of the box just to secure it. Clip the corners if they stick out, and use tape to make them look smooth.

See the corner on the left? Ya, clip it like the one on the right….

I also put a strip of another color paper along the top, again using double-sided tape to secure it down.

You can print out these cute Tooth Fairy poems, or create your own design/color/poem.

Double-sided tape again…..secure the poem label onto the front, above the strip.

For a little extra color, I added a cut-out of paper on the underside of the lid. I’m going to use cotton balls or some cute padding for the bottom, to hold the precious tooth (and gift, when it’s switcheroo time).

And there you have it…an adorable, super-easy Tooth Fairy Box to hold your little one’s treasure in!

Oh, and it cost a whole…..Dollar, MAYBE, once you consider the box, paper and tape? Ya, can’t really beat that!

My kids are so dang excited, I’m afraid they’ll start PULLING their teeth out so they can use these! Or knock them out, as may be the case with my boys. Argh!

Curious: What does YOUR tooth fairy leave for your kids? How does that compare to what you RECEIVED when it was your tooth-losing time?

Babysitter Information Form

January 29, 2014 by Danielle

I have a confession: I’m VERY picky as to who I leave my kids with. After a babysitter stole our Ipad (passed it to her boyfriend and had it sold) before we even returned home, I’ve become really cautious. When I DO leave my kids, I make sure it’s someone I trust completely. Along with that, I want to make sure they have ALL the information they’ll need for a successful night, for them AND for the kids! This printable Babysitter Information Form is perfect, just in case there’s something you forget to mention, or they don’t remember ALL the stuff they were given right before you walk out the door.

Here’s the different parts of the form:

Home Information: your home address, phone number, etc. In case they need to give an emergency person that info, or are ordering a pizza.

Emergency Contacts: This is where we put a trusted neighbor that’s close by, and near by relatives that can be contacted just in case.

Notes & Instructions: Here we put things like allergies, if someone needs some medicine at certain times, what meals are planned, etc.

Routines: When they play, read, clean up, eat dinner, brush, bedtime, etc.

House Rules: General rules, and what form of discipline to use (we use ‘take a break’ here).

Non-Emergency Fire & Rescue: As it says, put the number for the non-emergency important rescue people. Like dispatch, etc.

What else do you think should be included?

Teaching Your Kids to Tie Their Shoes

January 25, 2014 by Danielle

Do you remember how you learned to tie your shoes? Ya, me neither. Maybe the bunny loop hole thing? Or like on Shrek Forever After ‘into the dragon’s keep’? No matter how we learned, it’s kind of an important thing. For most, at least.

Teaching Your Kids to Tie Their Shoes

When Wonder Woman needed to learn to tie her shoes, I seriously had the hardest time teaching her. I didn’t know how to explain what I just….DID. When I thought too hard about it, I couldn’t tie my shoes! Ugh, it was awful. Then these cute little cut-outs happened, and she learned to tie her shoes So. Dang. Fast. LOVED IT! And when she had no-tie shoes for over a year and needed a bit of a refresher course, out they came and she fiddled with them until she caught on again.

Now YOU can get these little cut-outs for your little (or big, whatever) ones to practice with, without causing where, tear and frustration to their actual laces! All you need to do it print out this page onto a sturdy material (or flimsy, just laminate it).

Make sure you size it to ROUGHLY their foot size. Doesn’t have to be perfect, by any means. Not like they’re going to walk around in them. Cut it out, laminate if desired, and use a hole punch over the dots for the lace holes. Get some yarn (or laces, if you have them and want to), and treat it like a shoe! The side flaps fold right up over the foot, so they get the real feel and angle of shoe tying.

Happy Shoe Lace Tying!

Chore Rewards Treasure Chest

January 18, 2014 by Danielle

Have you noticed that my kids really love pirates? Well, they do! So much so, that we decided to use it to our advantage. If you’ve seen Jake & The Neverland Pirates, you know of their ‘Team Treasure Chest’. They earn gold doubloons to fill it up. We made our very own!We just got a plain, unfinished chest from Michaels. Then put some red and gold paint for details. Finish it off by putting a clear, wood sealant on it and PRESTO….you’re set to go!

Just like the chest on the show, we made sure to include Cubby’s Map on one side….

Izzy’s bag of Pixie Dust on the other side…

And, of course, Jake’s Sword on the front!

How our system works, is that every day they do ALL of their chores and were decently good (come on, they’re kids, I’m totally fine with decently vs perfection!) they earn ONE gold doubloon. If they were EXTRA good and/or did EXTRA chores, they can earn TWO gold doubloons.

We keep track on a sheet how much each child earns. They can then use their individually earned coins to buy fun extras, such as a candy bar or staying up later.

We put their earned doubloons into the treasure chest, and AS A FAMILY earn towards large, family things, such as a trip to the movies or dinner out.

This is our chart that we use so they know how much to earn for what. Notice the Family Earnings are VERY large amounts, but we have 4 kids, so that’s potentially over 200 per month.

Yes, I understand this is a form of bribery, and I’m totally okay with that because 1) it works for us! And 2) life is full of bribery (example, would you go to work if you didn’t get a paycheck? I don’t think so!) So for now, this is what we’re doing for our family.

What rewards systems do you use for your family, or have you used that did or didn’t work?

When your child gets Lice – from Healthline.com

September 4, 2013 by Danielle

This post is sponsored by Healthline.com

What to do When Your Child Gets Lice

Lice are a common problem for kids from the age of three to twelve years. Lice seem to like girl’s hair more than boys, probably because it is typically longer and has a “pretty” scent. Lice are contagious and an annoyance, but they are not dangerous. They do not cause disease. A child’s scalp will become inflamed and itch from the bites. There can be irritation to the skin and infection from the constant scratching.

Head lice spread easily among both children and adults, making it wise to treat them quickly after they have been discovered.

What to do when your child gets lice / Busy Mom's Helper

Signs of Head Lice

Lice are easy to see even though they are very small. A thorough examination of your child’s head by your doctor or yourself might show:

● Nits (lice eggs) before they hatch, nits look like tiny brown, tan or dark yellow dots. The adult lice lay the eggs or nits on the scalp on the hair shafts. They are kept warm by the temperature of the person until they hatch and become lice. They resemble dandruff but cannot be shaken off or brushed out.

It is less common to see lice crawling on the scalp, unless there is a heavy infestation. It is easier to find eggs in the child’s hair. It takes one to two weeks for lice eggs to hatch after being laid. There is a clear or white shell left after the eggs hatch. They remain attached to the hair shaft. They are easiest to see at this stage. The eggshell moves farther down the scalp as the hair continues to grow.

● Baby lice (nymphs) and adult lice are tan or grayish white in color and the size of a seed. It takes one to two weeks for nymphs to become adult lice. Lice can survive as long as two days off the scalp, even though they feed several times a day on blood.

Scratching and itching come with bites from lice. This is a reaction to lice saliva. The itchiness might not be immediate. It depends on the sensitivity of the child’s skin. Children with lice might not start scratching for weeks. There might be complaints of things tickling their heads before the lice are discovered.

Scratching leads to small sores or red bumps. The irritation can be mild for some or a rash can develop. The skin can become tender, red and have oozing and crusting accompanied by swollen lymph glands (bacterial infection) because of the scratching. The infection may be treated with an antibiotic.

Using a fine-toothed comb, separate your child’s hair into sections to check behind their ears, and neck to allow you to see the nits or lice. Rarely are they found on the eyebrows or eyelashes.

You may find that a bright light or magnifying glass helps. There are not a lot of adult lice and they move fast making them hard to find.

You will want to find out if any other children have been treated for lice recently from the director of the childcare center or school nurse. Contact the daycare or school to inform them if you find that your child has signs of lice or nits.

Tammy Mahan has worked in the healthcare field for several years. She has also spent most of her life raising or working with children. When she is not activity wearing the mom or nurse hat, she enjoys sharing her knowledge with Healthline.com .