Halloween Hysteria

#Halloween #costumes #fall #kids #kidscostumes #familycostumes

As a proper 21st century Mom living in a Pinterest world, I start thinking about Halloween in about March. Not because I’m going to do anything crazy like come up with handmade family costumes that I’m going to make from scratch or anything. No, I’ve just got to come up … Read More

Whatever Happened to Playing Outside? The Importance of Outdoor Play for Kids

How long are kids supposed to play outside every day? And what are the benefits of playing outside, anyways? Read on to hear what the experts have to say about kids’ outdoor play.

When it comes to parenting, there’s no shortage of experts telling us what we’re supposed to be doing with our kids on the daily. From how long they can watch TV to how long they should play outside, the powers that be have prescribed- to the literal minute- how our kids should be spending their days.

There’s absolutely no way that you can hit every target on the head. Some days you’ll fall far short of your goals, and other days you might exceed them. It’s hard to get those numbers out of your head, and even harder not to measure your “success” as a parent by whether or not you meet those goals.

Two children running towards a play area in a park

So as with any expert advice, we want to advise you before we dig in- take a deep breath. Doctors, teachers, and parenting experts are here to guide us in the right direction, not to penalize us when we fall short. Use all recommendations as a general guide and move towards best practices over time.

With that said, something almost ALL of those people agree on? That our kids are simply not getting enough unstructured, outdoor play time. So how can we, as parents, fix that? How do we make sure that our kids are getting the most of their outdoor play?

Two children holding hands facing towards the camera by trees. Text overlay: Are your kids getting enough time outside?

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Diverse Children’s Books featuring People of Color

Looking for some diverse children’s books to add to your children’s library? Check out our favorite kids’  picture books that happen to include people of color as the main character.

As the mother of two children of (varying shades of) color, I am always on the lookout for diverse picture books. Considering how important it is for kids to see people who like them in print and in the media, it is actually pretty shocking to me how few books feature characters that aren’t white (or aren’t animals for that matter, but that’s not what we’re talking about today).

And while I love books that explicitly teach kids about differences (Happy in My Skin and It’s Okay to Be Different being two of our favorites), my favorite thing is finding great books where the child’s ethnicity/race/culture is not the focus of the story, but simply a part of who the child is.

The character might (and should!) live in a world that is cognizant of their culture, but they are going through things the common kid goes through- like getting a new pet, being scared of monsters, or participating in the school’s science fair. 

So, here’s a list of our favorite diverse children’s books that just so happen to feature children of color in a starring role.

Looking to add to your children's picture book library? Make sure you check out these stellar choices- all of which happen to feature children of color is starring roles. Get the list of our favorite pictures books with diverse characters at TheSaltyMamas.com. #picturebooks #kidsbooks #raisingreaders #kids #parents #diversity #childrenofcolor #representationmatters

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10 School Readiness Skills (That Have NOTHING to Do with Academics!)

Is your child ready to start school? Whether it's preschool, transitional kindergarten, or kindergarten itself, don't forget these 10 skills that they NEED to have before they start. Find them all at TheSaltyMamas.com.

A new school year brings with it many things- new backpacks. New uniforms. New teachers. And for some of us it brings new experiences.  When you first set out to prepare your kids for their FIRST first day of school, a million questions pop into your mind. Have we mastered the preschool readiness skills? What does my child need to know before TK starts? Will they be okay without me?

As a former teacher, I was surprised to find that I had exactly the same concerns when my daughter went to school for the first time. I felt like there were soooo many things I wanted to teach her before school started- and believe it or not, letters and numbers were the least of my concerns!

When it comes to school readiness, there are more important things to focus on (things like independence, how to get along with others, and fine motor skills) that will free up the teacher’s time to teach academics.  So if you find yourself wondering, “is my child ready for school?” Well, here’s ten things that you can teach your kids before school starts that your child’s Kindergarten/TK/Pre-K teacher will LOVE you for.

Is your child ready to start school? Whether it's preschool, transitional kindergarten, or kindergarten itself, don't forget these 10 skills that they NEED to have before they start. Find them all at TheSaltyMamas.com.

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