Little Tikes Giddyup n’ Go Pony
From the Manufacturer
This ride-on pony is perfect for a horseback ride. As you bounce up and down, your pony’s legs move and you really go for a ride. Safety brakes included (activated when seat is held down continuously). Press the left ear to activate the galloping sound. Press the right ear to activate “whinny” and snorting sounds. Tail swings side to side as the child rides the pony. Handlebars are located on the pony’s head to make steering easy. Tight 4 foot steering radius. Makes physical activity fun – kids exercise while having a great time.
This ride-on pony is a toddler’s perfect first horseback ride. As kids bounce up and down, the wheeled pony’s legs start rolling, so kids can really go for a ride! Horse also comes with safety brakes, which are activated when the seat is held down continuously. Riders can simply press down on the left ear to hear life-like galloping sounds; or press on the right ear for whinnying and snorting … >>> Available at Amazon >>> Check Price Now!
Fisher-Price Barbie Tough Trike Princess Ride-On
From the Manufacturer
Styled for a princess, yet tough enough for years of fun and adventure! The pretend key turns and clicks – there’s even a secret storage compartment under the comfort-ride seat for all her trinkets and treasures! Durable tires and rugged treads pair-up for “off-road” fun, plus it’s got all the essentials you look for in a trike: a wide, stable wheel base, easy-grip handlebars and big foot pedals. For outdoor use only.
Styled for a princess, yet tough enough for years of fun and adventure! Girls can hop to troll around their entire kingdom. Trike features a pretend key that turns and clicks, and there’s a secret storage compartment under the comfort-ride seat for trinkets and treasures. Durable tires and rugged treads pair up for “off-road” fun. Trike has all the essentials that parents look for, too, like a wide, stable wheel base, easy-grip handlebars and big no-slip foot pedals. For outdoor use only. Holds up to 55 … >>> Available at Amazon >>> Check Price Now!
Playskool Walk N Ride – Pink
2 toys in one! Sturdy, stable walker helps babies learn to stand and walk. Then it easily and safely converts to baby’s first ride-on toy, with a locking mechanism only parents can activate. Also has lots of hands-on activities. Girl themed. pink and purple color scheme
… >>> Available at Amazon >>> Check Price Now!
Graco My Ride 65
Are you looking to find your child the perfect car seat? If so, you may be a little overwhelmed by how many options, brands and features you have to choose from. So, to make things a little bit easier, we have one car seat in particular that we’d like to share with you.
This seat has excellent ratings from other parents, great features and was crashed tested and approved to meet and even exceed some U.S. safety standards. The seat we’re talking about is the Graco My Ride 65 Convertible car seat.
This seat truly has it all, so if you’re interested in finding out more about it, continue reading below!
Graco My Ride 65 Convertible Features:
To start, if your child weighs 5-65 lbs, this seat is perfect for them!
It includes EPS energy absorbing foam, comes LATCH equipped to help with an easier installation, had two cup holders (one on each side) so that your little one can have drinks and snacks on the go, it has a removable and washable fabric cover, and a 5-point harness (something parents love!)
There are plenty of great car seats out there, but if you’re looking for one that is all about safety and great features, this one is definitely one to consider. We buy our child a safety seat to make sure they’re safe while riding in the car, and if this seat meets and exceeds some of the standards, you know you can’t go wrong! Keep your little one happy, safe and comfortable with this affordable seat!
Reflections on Need
The needs of a human being are actually very basic when you come to think about. We see it when a baby is born. Without these basic needs, a baby will actually die. I was quite surprised when I learned that a child that is born and then not given any human contact at all (being carried, cuddled etc.) will eventually die even though it has food to eat. So what are these basic needs that babies have? The baby needs food, warmth affection and security. When any of these needs are not supplied, the baby responds by crying.
It is interesting that as the baby grows older something else is added to their needs, and that is wants. They start to want what they do not need. This grows more and more into adulthood reaching a crescendo with what is commonly termed as lust.
Many children today do not need any more toys. However they keep wanting more and more and toys. Their parents who hardly spend any time with them, are more than happy to buy them more and more toys if only to assuage their own guilt for not spending time with them. The toy industry is making billions producing toys that the children do not really need but which they want. Children are not encouraged to entertain themselves and so they need ever more exotic toys and video games to keep their little minds on a constant high. “Mum I’m bored” has become a song that terrifies young mothers! I never dared to tell my mother that I was bored when I was growing up because she would have definitely found something for me to do. “No sir!” I was not going to let my mother be creative with housework that needed to be done!
As they grow into teenage-hood and finally into young adulthood, they have been trained to survive on “highs.” Is it a wonder that they eventually take drugs to give them the ultimate high?
So we have been trained to buy things that we want rather things that we need. Clearing our homes after we die becomes such a tedious work of getting rid of our unnecessary “toys.”
Dirt King Child Dually Tricycle (Green) Heavy Duty
Dirt King Child Dually Tricycle (Green) Heavy Duty Review
Feature
- “World’s Best Tricycle”
- Lifetime warranty on frame
- All Terrain Pneumatic Tires
- Over 30,000 sold, not one returned
- Smooth ride using 5/8 ” steel ball bearings
Product Description
The Dirt King is virtually indestructible. Hand welded and constructed of heavy duty 14 and 16 gauge steel. The Dirt King comes equipped with all terrain pneumatic tires mounted on heavy duty steel rims with 5/8 inch steel ball-bearings. Easily rides on grass, rocks, and un-even sidewalks. The adjustable seat and tilting handlebars allow the Dirt King to adapt with your growing youngster for years of thrills and healthful fun and exercise. Over 30,000 sold. Built to last and for future generations. Crafted and Assembled in America by American Workers.
Available at Amazon >>> Check Price Now!
*** Product Information and Prices Stored: May 26, 2010 12:04:51
Nanny Agencies and Their Services
Our children are the most important people in our lives. When we have to work, and cannot care for them ourselves, we need to be able to trust the people we hire to take care of our precious ones. This is when you need to find the best nanny agencies. Many people struggle with the thought of a stranger taking care of their children. Parents put an ad in the paper, or ask friends for advice. But what about nanny agencies?
Parents interview the prospective nanny, and ask all of the right questions, but there is still the nagging feeling that they may not be totally honest. There is no way of knowing for sure. That is when a nanny agencies can be of assistance. Nanny agencies can offer more of a thorough screening process than event the most diligent parent can.
These nanny agencies are temp-to-hire agencies specially developed for nannies. Each applicant is screened; every aspect of his or her life is an open book. Nanny agencies do an extensive criminal background check complete with fingerprints, the employment history and check all references very carefully to rule out any possible threat to a child. Even though the agency screens each applicant, it is in the best interest of your child or children to check out the references for your self. Ask for prior clients and meet face to face with them. Write down all of the questions you want to ask. Often, when you have an actual face-to-face meeting, you are nervous and forget what you wanted to ask. When a parent decides to hire nanny agencies, there are a few things they need to take into consideration.
First of all ask questions. These people will be taking care of your children, ask as many question as it takes until you feel comfortable with the prospective nanny agency.
One of the first questions that should be asked is how long the nanny agency has been in business. It is not necessarily a bad thing to be a new agency, but with an established agency references can be furnished and the nanny agency itself will have some type of reputation. Ask what the placement success rate is. Experts estimate that placing six to eight nannies per month is a good ratio, as long as it is not the same nanny being placed.
The question of the rates and fees of the nanny agencies is important. No one wants to think that they cannot afford the best for their children, but in today’s economy, it is impossible not to take this into consideration. It is counter productive to hire a nanny one month, and not be able to pay for it the next.
The advantages to using nanny agencies are many. But there are also disadvantages. One such disadvantage is the monthly payments. These payments can sometimes be thousands of dollars. If a nanny agency claims have low rates, be very wary. An excellent agency that has an excellent reputation can and does charge a very high fee. You are paying for the expertise of the nannies that are within the agency.
Taming The Terrible Two’s With Traditional Toddler Toys
When children start to walk it’s a great opportunity to buy a toddler toys that will last for several years. Traditional toys tend to be built to last and although some can be deemed to be a little expensive, just look at what you are getting.
Craftsmanship second to none, sometimes materials used from sustainable sources, and a guarantee that the paint or glues used are non-toxic. Edges are rounded off for safety and you are unlikely to find sharp spikes or bits that fall off and create choking hazards. Energy is abundant at this stage and children just love to be active. Some of the more energy sapping gadgets come in the form of ride-on or ride-in toddler toys.
Don’t forget the other senses too. Toddlers love noise, colour and movement, in fact anything that clangs, whistles, rings or bangs is a firm favourite. Ride-on toys are built in all shapes and materials. Some are built like rocket ships and have vibrating motors and flashing lights to add to the excitement. Other ride-on toys can include fire-engines, complete with bells, or tow trucks – in fact whatever you want your child to ride around on it’s available, even a ride-on lion! Of course when the child has mastered the art of balance and co-ordination a firm favourite is the trike. These traditional toys are made in all kinds of materials but the wooden trike is becoming popular. Wheels are bound with rubber for easier maneuvering and will also stop those scuff marks around the house.
Then there is the ride-in toy taking the form of cars – even vintage cars – and the like. The child will love to motor around the house or garden hooting and making car noises. The more traditional toddler toys are still being manufactured today. Take the old hammer and peg set where the child can hammer away at wooden pegs that go through the hole to be hammered back again once the work is done. This has been improved upon by making the pegs into balls which will only drop through the hole if they are hit in the right manner. A little noisy but the children love the noise and they are rewarded by seeing their actions moving something. Great for hand-eye co-ordination too!
For quieter play there are many push and pull along toddler toys [http://www.monkeyshine.co.uk]. Traditional toys like train sets are now being made in wood with tracks and all kinds of attachments. Take, for example, the circus set. The track is laid down in free form and the engine can be pushed around by the child. Circus wagons and trucks hold many different animals and the child will spend hours loading and unloading them from the train. Other examples include school sets where pupils are transported to the school building. This is a great way to introduce the child to the idea of him/her going to playschool or ‘big kids’ school one day.
Playtime with ‘normal’ toys will encourage imagination and role-playing which is somewhat lacking with the more sophisticated electronic toys on offer today.
Middle School – Oh Boy, er, Girl!
Here it is. End of July, and school beckons from around the corner. Just like every summer, the months race by, and we’re back to the same old school routine.
For us, this year, it’s going to be a little different, and it won’t be the same old school routine. Our daughter Kathryn will be entering middle school. Her anxiety level is rising, and she’s reading all sorts of books like A Smart Girl’s Guide to Starting Middle School (American Girl) and How I Survived Middle School: Can You Get an F in Lunch?
Her biggest concern? How to open her locker, of course. To me and my husband, that seems to be the smallest of concerns. We don’t discount that a locker combination seems to be an impossible mechanical device. We just know that she’ll conquer the technology behind the locker combination pretty quickly. Other issues, though, won’t fade so fast.
She’s going to have to deal with cliques and mean-spirited people. Boys may become more of a fixture in her everyday thoughts and conversation. (Chris, my husband, is not too happy with that one.) Homework will be more challenging. She’s in Math 7, as opposed to Math 6, and she’s wondering how hard it will be. She won’t have the attention of a single homeroom teacher; instead she’ll have seven different teachers whom she’ll have to get to know and learn their particular styles.
While Kathryn is the type of person who can feel anxiety over anything she can’t fully define or control, we’re doing what we can to allay her fears. I told Kathryn we can go up to the school and tour it every week in August if she likes, before her half-day orientation. My husband has an old combination lock that we’re letting her practice on. We’re trying to get her in the habit of acknowledging her fears and accept all her feelings, even the “bad” ones (her words), as part of who she is. We’re talking about middle school and not just brushing off or avoiding her concerns.
The one thing she’ll have to learn, however, is just to deal with it and feel positive that it will turn out just fine. Our favorite words for Kathryn are “Go with the flow.” She needs to be able to accept what’s happening now and not to try to figure it out ahead of time or control it.
I suspect that when the first week of school is over, she’ll laugh at her anxieties over the locker. She’ll get used to the routine of changing classes. She’ll happily reunite with old friends and meet some new ones. She’ll be able to traverse the corridors of her new school with no problem.
Most importantly, she’ll have this experience of being scared, preparing for something new and unfamiliar, talking it through, and working through her fears.
As Kathryn put it at Six Flags last weekend: “I want to ride every ride at least twice: once because I’m scared, but at the end I enjoy it; and the second time so that I can enjoy it from beginning to end.” Now she can’t go through middle school twice (is that a nightmare or what?), but she can try to get a handle on her angst so that she can fully enjoy middle school from beginning to end.
She’ll get through middle school, high school, college, dating, and beyond. Although her father and I will gleefully ignore those particular milestones. No need to worry at this point. We’ll save that for future summers.
European Toy Safety For Children Under 3 Years
British and European toy safety regulations ensure that the toys available in our shops are safe and well made. In fact, just 1.5 per cent of household accidents in the UK involve toys and these are rarely because of a fault with the toy itself. While all toys sold here must adhere to very strict safety standards, those intended for children under 36 months must meet particularly rigorous standards. In this article we look at the regulations that cover toys for younger children and advise you on what to watch out for when buying them.
By law, all toys sold in the UK must meet the standards set out in the Toy Safety Regulations that were updated in 1995. One quick and easy way for a parent to check that a toy meets UK and European safety standards is to check for the CE marking.
Also, most toys in Britain bear the Lion Mark which provides further assurance that the toy meets the highest safety standards. However, by law toys for younger children and especially toys that could pose a danger for children under 36 months must bear extra markings.
These toys must bear a warning such as ‘Not suitable for children under 36 months’. This warning must be accompanied by details in the instructions of the particular danger posed to younger children by the toy. Common examples of this would be ‘Choking hazard’ or ‘Sharp objects’. It is possible for these warnings not to appear on toys when it is plainly obvious that they are not suitable for children under 36 months.
Also, the toy safety regulations state that the level of risk associate a toy should reflect the age of the child who will play with it. “This applies in particular to toys which, by virtue of their functions, dimensions and characteristics, are intended for use by children under 36 months,” the regulations state. Also, if any toy requires adult supervision, then this must be clearly stated on the toy or its packaging.
While age warnings in text are acceptable by law, they have increasingly been replaced by a logo since 1995. The ‘grumpy baby’ logo warns that a toy should not be used by a child under three years, and has become a familiar warning symbol to many consumers. While the logo can replace a warning in text, the reason for the hazard must still be provided in the toy’s instructions.
Buying toys for younger children
While age warnings are an essential part of the toy regulations, they can also be beneficial for consumers when it comes to choosing toys that are most beneficial and fun for a particular age group. While buying a plastic ball for a baby might not pose any safety risks, there are probably other toys that will be much more beneficial for the child’s development.
For this reason, consumers should always look out for markings that indicate which age group the toy is intended for. Toys for the birth to 12 months age group will differ significantly from toys intended for children aged one and two.
When buying for the birth to 12 months age group you should look for toys that will stimulate the child’s senses – sight, sound, touch and taste. Rattles and squishy toys are perfect for the early months, while blocks, cups and rings will become more suitable as the child approaches 12 months.
Once a child reaches one year and begins to walk an entirely different range of toys come into play. Toys for this age group should encourage and help with the physical and mental development of the child. Ride-on toys and push toys can be good for physical development at this age. There are any number of toys that can help with mental development such as basic jig-saw puzzles and simple board games.
Most manufacturers of toys for children under 36 months will specify which of these age groups the toy is most suitable for, even if toy safety regulations do not require it. It is also a good idea to exercise a degree of common sense when buying toys for young children. For example, if you are buying a cuddly toy quickly check that none of the small parts such as eyes are loose and that there is no loose stuffing or fur. The toy safety regulations go a long way towards protecting young children but it is not impossible for defective items to slip through the net.
Because of this, you should keep a constant ear to the ground for toy recalls. If you think you have any toy that has been recalled you should take it out of the toy box immediately. There are a number of websites that provide information on toy recalls.
