As a woman, I enjoy the occasional indulgence of a spa treatment. I have taken my 10 year old daughter for pedicures a couple times in her young life. She also has found these treatments to be delightful.

With a new 11 year old daughter in my life, I decided that the three of us should enjoy a morning of pampering. Reviewing the menus of local spas, I found one that offered a Mommy and Me package. Each of us would get a pedicure, mine including a paraffin dip, and a hand massage. The package typically is for a mom and one child, but the spa willingly accommodated 3 of us.

My 11 year old daughter had never been to a spa before this and was the more excited of the two. Upon arrival, each of us was given a glass of water in a goblet, which was quite a thrill in and of itself for the girls. Within minutes, our three aestheticians met us in the waiting area and brought us to the nail room. The girls chose the same shade of nail polish for their toes, climbed into their chairs, and got ready for their treatments.

The aestheticians were very kind to the girls and offered them entertainment magazines and checked that the water temperatures were fine. The girls enjoyed the massaging chairs and warm, bubbling water. I sat alongside them, soaking my feet, and listening to them giggle.

While only hand massages were part of the package, the aestheticians generously offered to do a quick fingernail painting for each girl. They happily agreed to this.

With freshly painted toenails and fingernails, the girls walked around the pond behind the spa while my treatment was finished. The spa owner reminded them that they had “princess hands” and to be careful of their wet polish. The girls loved this and strolled carefully on the lawn.

This definitely was an indulgence, but one that I feel was worth every cent. The girls were pampered, and we got to spend a day together. I plan to make this a yearly event, just three girls having a morning of fun.

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Bad breath is nothing to be embarrassed about unless you don’t do anything about it. Bad breath in children is a common condition; it is not necessarily a symptom of a serious health problem. Some of the most common causes of bad breath in young children include:

Improper brushing

Breathing through the mouth

Dehydration

Infrequent eating and drinking through the day

Bacterial activity

The solutions below can help alleviate bd breath, so be sure to give them a try:
Ensure that the child drinks a lot of fluids throughout the course of the day. Less fluid will lead to less saliva and a drier mouth. This can create a bacterial breeding ground, which ultimately will cause bad breath. In addition, frequent snacks and drinks will flush away odor-causing bacteria.

Knowing proper brushing techniques is important. Also, you need to make sure that your child brushes his teeth frequently and regularly. Young children may need your help but letting them know the importance of brushing not only their teeth but their tongue and the sides of their mouth will benefit them through adulthood.

Immediately treat allergy and cold symptoms by suctioning your child’s nose with a nasal aspirator. This will help prevent mouth breathing and decrease nasal drip, which can cause bad breath.

When you notice that your child still has bad breath after four or five days of thorough brushing and after following the recommendations above, it may be best to contact your doctor. You should be concerned, particularly if you see green nasal discharge from the nostrils; it can be a symptom of infection because of the presence of a foreign object in the nose. On the other hand, call your dentist if you see tooth decay or gum bleeding.

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To go along with TK’s post (Breakfast and a Game with Kids), I’ve got another game you will love to play with your family while you sit and wait around at a restaurant. In fact, this game is fun to play at camp or with a group of kids. You’ll be sure to have them confused!

Just a disclaimer, these may work better with kids who are older than 9 or so.

Okay, the game is called “Chinese Numbers.” This game is pictured. What you do is grab a bunch of sugar packets, condiments, toothpicks, or something else. Okay, now you make a pattern or something with the items and ask “what number is this?” Meanwhile, you have to discretely show X amount of fingers on the table. Check out the picture, see how she has only 8 of her fingers showing? I realize that some of the image has been cropped, but hopefully you get the idea.

But remember, your audience should NOT realize that the amount that is the answer to the question (what number is this?) is being shown to them by you. Instead, they should be focusing on the pattern that you have created with those items. So let’s say that they guess a number–five. You can let them guess some more, but eventually tell them that the number was actually 8.

Now, scramble up the items and create a new pattern. Put down a different amount (or the same) of fingers. The game continues like that until they realize the pattern and are able to tell you what the number actually is. So in reality, the true number has nothing to do with the items that you arrange; that’s merely a distraction.

If the kids need help, tell them that you can only make numbers up to 10. Unless, of course, you have more or less fingers.

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Children today spend a majority of their time in climate controlled environments. Their days are structured and scheduled, and they’re lacking in time to daydream or catch their breath. They’ve lost touch with nature, with the rhythms of the seasons and of life.

Experts are begging parents to let their children outdoors to play, discover, and de-stress. They recommend allowing kids an unfettered hour of free time every day in a natural environment.

Playing outside strengthens children’s immune systems, helps them become self-reliant, and provides hours of TV-free entertainment. Kids who play outside may get dirty, but also they’ll be exercising, problem solving, and getting a dose of Vitamin D.

It’s not necessary to live near a national park in order to let kids interact with the earth. Any place that has been left wild will do. A patch of weeds behind the housing development, a small neighborhood creek, or even the long untended grass at the edge of an athletic field all offer ample opportunity to learn about the world.

Don’t be intimidated by nature! Allow children to become immersed in it, using all of their senses. Take pictures of insects, animals and plants to identify later at the library or on the internet. Smell the water, the dirt, and the flowers. Feel slippery moss covered rocks, rough sandstone, or soft cattail fluff. Listen to birds or the song of the cicada. It’s possible to forage for wild food, even in the suburbs. (Make sure to bring along a detailed field guide to identify any plants you find.)

Looking for more ways to have fun in the wild? The National Wildlife Federation has created a website dedicated to giving parents ideas and activities to do outside. Now, go outside and play!

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As a father of four with two early stage companies, I do not get the opportunity to take a couple of the kids out for a meal often. But this humid Saturday morning in New Hampshire I was able to take one daughter and one son to breakfast at a local eatery, TJ’s Bagel and Eatery.

The popular local place was busy, but we were able to get a table right away. My rule when taking to kids to meals is that we should decide on meals as soon as possible. The reason behind this is that if the restaurant is slow in service I don’t want the kids to get bored. Bored kids leads to wild kids!

We made our choices: one order of pancakes, one waffle, and a cajun omelet. While Susan, our nice waitress, left with our order, we decided to begin playing our stable game at a restaurant.

The game has no name, but how it works is that one person takes any utensils on the table and makes a sculpture with them. Then the rest of the crowd makes guesses as to what he or she is making. When the correct guess happens the next person makes a sculpture. The game continues until the food arrives. It stirs conversation, keeps the kids occupied and thinking, and passes the time no matter how hungry everyone is.

Our breakfast arrived after one round of the sculpture game, and we jumped right into eating. As I watched the kids eat, I realized I was lucky to be able to spend time with my kids like this and that I truly am blessed with great kids.

We all finished our dishes, talked about what we were going to do with the rest of the day, and left with smiles on our faces.

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