Call It A Comeback?

Hello readers and fellow bloggers. As some of you already know, For Children's Sake has been in limbo due to some health issues and personal concerns that have been all-consuming. Rest assured, I have been gathering info and compiling books, music, and products for review, and please keep checking back now and again for updates. Take care! ~B.

Reading IS Fundamental

The oldest and largest children's and families' literacy nonprofit organization in the U.S. is Reading is Fundamental (RIF). Reading is Fundamental works with kids, their parents, and community members to help reading become a fun part of everyday life.

RIF's focus is mainly underserved children 8 years or younger. RIF provideds 4.5 million kids with 16 million new, free books and literary resources - every year.

If you would like to become a community volunteer or just want more info, RIF's website is www.RIF.org.

Buy in Bulk from the Dollar Tree

I love the Dollar Tree. The store carries such a wide variety of items, and when I am planning for a party, teacher appreciation luncheon, volunteer banquet...whatevskies...it is nice to be able to decorate or give out gifts or goodies bags without breaking the bank.

Everything at DollarTree.com is also $1 or less. AND if you ship items to a local Dollar Tree store instead of 2 your home, shipping is free. Woo-hoo!

My only problem with the site is that some of the sizes of the lots are just too big. I might actually find a use for 48 black frames, though, especially since my daughter loves to create masterpieces for me on the regular!

Anyway, Dollar Tree online already has about 750 products, and they are constantly expanding that.

Happy shopping!

Use iPhone to Name Your Baby

Name That Baby! is a relatively new iPhone application that provides baby name possibilities by the thousands. (Released October 2008) You just choose a gender and a starting letter, and give the iPhone a shake. Name that Baby! makes a rattle sound during the shaking.

You can even save name candidates to a favorites list.

Makes a fun gift for expectant parents and a perfect baby shower activity. At only $3.99, Name that Baby is a bargain compared to most books of baby names.

For more info, visit www.doubletapapps.com.

Shake your iPhone, but never never ever ever shake your baby!

Win Free Sprout Organic Baby Food

Due Maternity (designer maternity clothing and accessories) is giving customers a chance to win one month's supply of free Sprout Organic Baby Food from its partner, SproutBaby.com through the online store at www.DueMaternity.com.

Good taste, good quality, good nutrition, and good for the planet. Awesomeness, right?

Go to www.duematernity.com/maternity-contest.html to enter and to learn more about Sprout Organic Baby Food.

Borders and Waldenbooks - "Super Saturday Smackdown" Trivia Tournament

Borders and Waldenbooks across the nation will host "Super Saturday Smackdown" at 2 pm June 27th. So head on over this weekend for trivia fun ("Jeopardy!" style). Some possible trivia categories are: Dr. Seuss, Encyclopedia Brown, Junie B. Jones, Nate the Great, Magic Tree House, Harry Potter, Fudge, Pendragon, and the Artemis Fowl books. There is a prize for the victor!

In select stores, there will also be an arts and crafts project available and storytime. During the event, kids will be provided with samples of drinks from the Seattle's Best Coffee cafe located in most Borders superstores.

Border's "Summer Reading Challenge" continues through August 31st. Kids age 12 and under who read 8 books and list the books they have read on the "Summer Reading Challenge" form ("coupon") found in Borders or Waldenbooks stores, or at www.borders.com/summerreading, can choose from select books after a parent signs the form. These books are all priced at only $4.99, which is 50 percent or more off their usual price.

If you want to find out if a Borders or Waldenbooks store in your area will be holding a "Super Saturday Smackdown" event, and what other upcoming events are being offered, use the Store Locator function on Borders.com.

Sounds like a fun way to generate excitement for summer reading!

Survey on Dads' Role in Children's Education

Many fathers today are more actively involved with the education of their children than their own fathers were, even during the summer months. Hooray for modern men!

In a recent online survey commissioned by Kumon Math and Reading Centers (April 2009), dads feel one of their main parenting roles is to help their children excel in school. A full 50 percent of the fathers surveyed indicated that they were more likely than their wives to motivate kids to do schoolwork.

Other survey highlights:

3 out of 4 dads were aware of summer learning opportunities
6 out of 10 dads enroll their kids in organized summer learning programs

For more stats from the survey or more info about Kumon (an after-school math and reading program), visit www.kumon.com.

Happy Father's Day!

Turn Your Toilet Green

Ew, right?

Actually, making your toilet "green," a.k.a. "earth-friendly" or "eco-conscious" is a cinch.

Fill an empty plastic 20-ounce or 1 liter drinking bottle with water, then tuck it inside the toilet tank, below the handle mechanism.

Trial and error: anywhere else in the tank, and the bottle gets sucked down with every flush, causing MORE water usage. Oh, and duct tape will NOT hold it in place. But maybe plumber's tape would?

This trick results in less water usage with every flush, and is much less expensive than installing a low-flow toilet if you don't already have one.

The water in my toilet tank now rises to about 1 1/2 inches less depth than before. I have not figured out the volume on that - math was never my strong suit - but it seems like it is probably a significant amount!

An option my mom suggested, which was a popular water conservation trick in days predating me, is to place a brick in the tank.

If you run a business or work at an office with multiple bathroom stalls, or have more than one toilet in your house, implementing this idea has even more of an impact!

Let me know if you can think of other ideas for conserving water in your bathroom!

And This Little Piggy Got the Flu...

Swine Flu is NOT sweeping the nation. Hundreds of thousands of people die of influenza worldwide each year, and yet we are not up in arms. Here's the facts, courtesy of Tulsa Health Department.

-Swine Flu is a respiratory disease of pigs. There are regular outbreaks in pigs. Human infections do not happen often. Person-to-person spreading of swine flu was not sustained beyond 3 people in the past.

-There has been limited reporting of H1N1 (swine influenza A) in the U.S. A case count for confirmed infections in humans in the U.S. is available at http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/investigation.htm.

-Symptoms are similar to regular influenza. Fever, cough, sore throat, aching, headache, chills, fatigue, possibly diarrhea and vomiting. Pneumonia and respiratory failure and deaths have been reported. This is likely because, like seasonal flu, swine flu can cause worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions.

-If you get sick, stay home. Thanks.

-12 cases of swine flu were detected in the U.S. between 2005 and 2009, and no deaths occurred.

-There were over 200 cases with serious illness in 1976 in New Jersey. There was only one death.

-Swine flu is not spread by eating pork.

The moral of the story is not to lick each other and to continue to use soap and warm water and scrub for at least as long as it takes to sing "This is the way we wash our hands, wash our hands, wash our hands. This is the way we wash our hands, with soap and water."

If children or adults seem like they need emergency medical care due to breathing problems, bluish skin color, lack of fluids, inability to interact, fever with a rash, dizziness, confusion, persistent vomiting, etc., go to the ER or an Urgent Care facility. (Stating the obvious.) Swine flu or not!

(If you would like to be mailed a two-page handout with more information on Swine Influenza, please send me your address at ston_bran@yahoo.com. You may also visit the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) website, or www.tulsa-health.com.

Free Online Literacy Program

Scholastic's Summer Challenge is a free online program created to encourage literacy in kids between the ages of 5 and 12. A love of reading is cultivated, and Scholastic aims to motivate kids to read a minimum of 4 books this summer.

At the end of the summer, Scholastic will give a contribution to Save the Children on the behalf of all participants in the Summer Challenge.

For more info on Scholastic's Summer Challenge, and for age-appropriate book recommendations, visit www.Scholastic.com/summer.

Tulsa Area Car Seat Safety Checks in June

I went to a children's health and safety fair last month and checked the installation of my daughter's booster seat. It was installed incorrectly, despite the pictured instructions on the side of the model, which I had followed precisely!

For readers who live in my area, here are car seat safety checks that Safe Kids will be sponsoring in June:

June 4th 2-4pm State Farm Insurance 12222 State Farm Blvd (51st & 129th)

June 9th 10am-noon Owasso Fire Dept. 207 S. Cedar (76th St. N & Cedar)

June 20th 9am-noon Creek Nation Tribal Complex 13000 Loop 56 (Hwy 75 & Loop 56)

June 25th 10am-noon Riverside Chevrolet 707 W 51st (I-44 & Arkansas River)

For more info, call 918-494-SAFE, or visit www.safekidstulsa.com.

Encourage Creativity - Publish Your Child's Artwork

Scholastic Parent & Child considers submissions of children's artwork, including drawings, photographs, and paintings, for possible publication in one of the magazine's issues. If they do end up using your mini-Michaelangelo's artwork in a future issue, Scholastic will send your son or daughter a complimentary box of books!

Send submissions to:
Samantha Brody
557 Broadway
5th Floor
New York, NY 10012

or

SBRODY@SCHOLASTIC.COM

Happy Mother's Day!

Can't write much...this is time that is practically sacred, but could not let Mother's Day go by without giving a shout out to all the Moms out there.

Not all superheroes wear capes!

Happy Mother's Day. :-)

Stamp Out Hunger today!

Community food banks have been hit even harder in the current economic downturn than our pantries have been.

Today is the Stamp Out Hunger community food bank drive. Donating is as easy as putting non-perishable food items in your mailbox (or in a box or paper bag under the mailbox). The postal carrier and area volunteers will pick up the donations.

Let's not punish the needy because we're feeling passive-aggressive about Monday's postage rate hike!

New Generation of Feminists

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5heUgjHB3X0

There is no embedding available, but this is the URL for Part 3 of 5 of a YouTube video of Gloria Steinem when she spoke at a Lecture series in 2007.

There are 5 parts, and several of my friends asked questions. I can't remember if I ever got questions out of my mouth or just sat there alternately crying and in stunned silence.

The little girl is my daughter, who was allowed to play hooky from first grade that afternoon. After all, Ms. Steinem is 73, and by the time my child is a grown woman, the opportunity to hear her speak may be long gone. There is much life learning to be had outside of school, too.

Although this post is more personal than informational, I share it with you, readers, to encourage you to encourage all the woman in your lives to use their voices. "Use your words" may take them places we could never expect.

Scholastic has April sweepstakes for parents

Scholastic is offering an online sweepstakes for a bundle of Baby Einstein brand goodies this month. Enter to win the Baby Einstein sweepstakes, Thai Kitchen sweepstakes, or "Tale of Desperaux" contest by visiting their home page.

Online Resource for Caregivers of Children with ADHD

Internet savvy moms are now all over social networking sites such as Facebook. All parents need to reach out and create a social support system.

McNeil Pediatrics, a division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., sponsors the "ADHDMoms" group on Facebook. All parents and caregivers of children with ADHD are invited to join the online community. Parents and pediatricians provide insight and encouragement about raising a child or children who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Hear from others what has worked for them in coping with and managing their children's ADHD diagnosis, and share your story.

Celebrate Spring with Snack Mix

Does your pantry look a little bit like a pastel marshmallow barnyard right now? Either the Easter Bunny left a few goodies behind, or you found a great after-the-holiday sale at your neighborhood grocer. What are you going to do with all of them, besides using them in hot cocoa or rice cereal treats?

How about pouring some trail mix into snack bags (make your own with granola, dried fruits, and sunflower kernels) and then including the marshmallows for a touch of sweet with the salty?

We also added yogurt-covered fruit bits (Kellogg's brand Yogos Bits) for more color and a different texture, but you could also use yogurt-covered raisins.

My little one called ours "Hopping Down the Bunny Trail Mix." If you want the mix to be a mouthful but can't wrap your mouth around that long of a name, you could call it "Peter Cottontrail Mix." Or make some "Chicks Mix" for your brood!

Piggies, Pennies, and People Make CHANGE

As a side note, someone once got their cliches confused (He claimed!) and asked what I was thinking about by saying "A penny for your two cents." Hardly seems like a fair trade...

Unbeknownst to my daughter, we are going to be making a piggy bank out of a 2-liter soda bottle and paper towel tubes. Or we are going to make 3 or 4 small piggy banks out of 20-oz bottles.

(For instructions to this craft, Google "soda bottle piggy bank craft" or "soda bottle piggy bank craft(s) project(s)" and use whichever directions work best for your supplies on hand.)

I came across a sidebar on page 116 of the April 2009 Ladies Home Journal that, in combination with the piggy or piglet banks, will help reinforce a few financial and life lessons:

1. One can and does make a difference. One penny, one person, one vote, one kind word.

2. Helping others feels good.

3. Spending money is instant gratification and feels good at the time but may not have long-lasting effects or rewards. Saving money is delayed gratification, which is even more delicious.

These groups were mentioned by LHJ:

Common Cents Penny Harvest
School kids give their pennies to help support community organizations. Kids choose which groups receive the contribution.

Pennies for Peace
Central Asia Institute's Pennies for Peace uses donations to build schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan for kids with few opportunities for education, particularly young girls.

Penny Lovers of America
This organization, in celebration of its 25 years in existence, is sponsoring the National Penny Recycling Campaign. The money collected will be used to fund college scholarships for disadvantaged kids.

Other organizations that I believe have coin-based fundraising include March of Dimes, United Way, and UNICEF. If you can think of any others, feel free to tell us about them by leaving a comment!

commoncents.org
penniesforpeace.org
pennylovers.org

Campbell's Soup Seeds for Future Farmers of America

Campbell's Soup is joining forces with Future Farmers of America (FFA). Click on the "Grow" button at HelpGrowYourSoup.com/FFA (only once per day per IP Address) and Campbell's Soup donates 50 cents per click to FFA. If you request a packet of complimentary seeds (details to follow), Campbell's will donate an additional 50 cents to FFA!

Campbell's and FFA are also teaming up to encourage/fund urban farming projects (gardens in communities and schools).

After clicking, you get to find out how close they are to their goal. (After my click, it was 229,549 clicks away from the goal.)

If you have purchased Campbell's condensed soup, enter the codes from the bottom of the can (website explains which numbers to look for) and the variety of soup purchased, and you will receive a packet of tomato seeds just like those used to grow those in Campbell's soup!

(My mother and daughter and I are growing veggies this year and these seeds will be the ones used for our tomatos. If you are local to Tulsa and also growing your food this year, let me know...maybe we can do a veggies/greens/gourds exchange/harvest party later this year!)

Whooping cough is a Whopper!

Flash back to Labor Day weekend 2008. About 2 dozen of my friends and neighbors (that I know of) were sick sick sick, including 2 or three elementary-age children.

My daughter didn't visit her father that weekend. He and I talked about it and decided that it was best for her to stay home with me instead of exposing his then-newborn son to what was obviously some random virus.

I didn't take her to see her doctor because I was able to keep her fever controlled with medicine and cool cloths, and because there is not much one can do for a virus except let it run its course. (Antibiotics are for bacterial infections only. Over-use leads to antibiotic resistance or even the developing of antibiotic allergies.)

She was fever-free by the following Monday morning (Labor Day). So back to school she went.

I and at least 3 other adults stayed sick, though. Really, really sick.

In the second or third week of September, I went to my doctor, and after ruling out strep, etc., he said that it was as suspected when I described how it swept through the complex and how the kids got better but a few of the adults did not, combined with my symptoms -- I had pertussis. Whooping cough! I thought, "Isn't that a childhood disease?!?"

I asked my doctor if I should take my daughter to her pediatrician, and my doc explained that in vaccinated children, whooping cough lasts about 5 days and is contagious during that time, but then goes away. The contagious period in adults with whooping cough also lasts about 5 days. She had all her DTAP shots, and is only seven, so he said there really was no reason to take her to her doctor at that point.

In infants (who have not been immunized against it), and adults who had not heard they need a booster (like me!), and in the elderly, pertussis is much worse.

True to his prediction, I suffered the symptoms a total of 8 weeks. Mild whooping cough symptoms linger another 6-8 months!

So, heads up, parents!

Pertussis (whooping cough) is not just some childhood disease that has not been a problem since the beginning of last century. It still takes lives!

Babies may not be totally in the clear from being infected by the virus until their 3rd or 4th dose. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends a booster shot for anyone between the ages of 11 and 64. Parents are often the source of infant cases of whooping cough.

Don't know what whooping cough sounds like? You can hear it at DoItForYourBaby.com

A Class Act

The week of May 4th is Teacher Appreciation Week. It's only a couple of weeks away, so start planning now!

Even busy parents can send a card with a child (even better if your son or daughter makes the card) to let teachers know their intense commitment to our kids is appreciated.

I'm still brainstorming...

The Large Print Giveth

...and the small print taketh away.


The maxim is even more important to remember when making even the most basic financial decisions.


Keeping an eye on your family's financial health is important in any financial climate, but even more so in the United States' current economic situation.


One easy and basic step in attending to your personal and family finances is obtaining a copy of your credit reports. Besides allowing you to take an objective look at your financial health as current and potential creditors see it, checking your credit report is an important safeguard to identity theft.


Consumers are entitled to one free annual credit report per year from each of the major credit reporting bureaus -- Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax, and to a free credit report (from the agency whose information was used) during a short period of time after having been denied credit due to information found in a credit report.


The official website to request your annual copy of the credit reports is Annualcreditreport.com. Any other website or service will cost consumers money, even if the word "free" is used in the name of the company.


Unfortunately, unscrupulous companies can manipulate even conscientious consumers by leaving out the details.


Most of them will provide the credit reports for "free," but only after the consumer subscribes to a credit-report monitoring service. While there are some advantages to being alerted anytime a change is made to your credit report, obtaining copies of it once per year is something consumers can do on their own.


Although not an outright scam, a credit-monitoring service subscription is a lot like a scholarship search service...charging a fee for something the informed can do for no cost at all.

If you have ever had to drive 30 minutes with your child in respiratory distress in order to reach a hospital equipped for pediatric emergencies, then you may want to keep your eyes and ears open about the Wakefield Act. H.R. 479 was first introduced during the 110th Congress, but the bill has been revived.

H.R. 479 is would amend the Public Health Service Act for the sake of improving emergency medical services for children.

The Wakefield Act authorizes funding for improvements such as increasing the training of medical professionals in dealing with children's physical and psychological needs in emergency situations, research, and for medical technology that is child-centered.

If you would like to support the bill (or not), you may contact legislators at Thomas.loc.gov, which you can navigate to by clicking on the word "contact" at the end of the bill (lower left).

To read a detailed summary of the bill, or to link to the bill and read it yourself, go here:
(After you're finished reading and commenting here, of course!)
http://www.washingtonwatch.com/bills/show/111_HR_479.html

Equal Pay for Equal Work

Did you know that, according to the American Association of University Women (AAUW), women were only earning 77 cents to every dollar that men were being paid for the same work in 2004?

Equal pay is not just a women's issue. It is not just an issue for single mothers. It is a family issue, regardless of family structure. The gender gap in wages take away money from parents (married or single) and their children. It effects the ability to properly feed, clothe, house, and insure children.

When Mom works outside the home and gets equal pay, everyone benefits, including taxpayers who feel they are "supporting" those who have to seek public assistance because of financial hardship. $15 million to carry out the act seems like a lot less than is being shelled out through charities and social services to help families in need get by.

The Paycheck Fairness Act, introduced by Senator Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), was passed in the House, but still awaits the Senate vote.

Go to Senate.gov to let the Senators of your state know your thoughts about gender-based compensation discrimination.

For more information on the Paycheck Fairness Act of 2009, H.R. 12, view www.themiddleclass.org/bill/paycheck-fairness-act-2009.