MomTrusted on Parenting, Kids, and Early Education

Fun Carpets and Rugs Made Just For Kids

 

Whether you’re looking to carpet your daycare or shopping for play rugs at school, our pals at KidCarpet.com offer a variety of options at shockingly low costs.

 

Kid Carpet offers a wide variety of colors and patterns to choose from. From colorful ABC, sitting rugs to rugs with educational number patterns, there’s something for every care provider and teacher. Check out states, countries and continents with map rugs. Learn new languages with bilingual rugs.

 

Kid Carpet is the only place where care centers and schools can purchase carpet and rugs directly from the factory, cutting back on any unnecessary costs from the middle men.

 

And because we know just how much you’d love Kid Carpet’s products, we want to make their low prices even lower by offering you this special deal:

 

Save $10 on your order when you enter “Mom Trusted” at checkout.

Offer expires October 31, 2013. Offer good for one order.

 

To top it off, you’re even spreading a little love when you buy from Kid Carpet. A portion of every single purchase goes to Cooperative of Education so order your rugs from KidCarpet.com today!

Healthy Eating Made Easy for Kids

 

As we’ve seen in everything from newspapers to scientific reports, there’s a major childhood obesity epidemic in the U.S. One of the most important factors in fighting obesity is portion control and the goal of our friends at Portion Size Matters is just that.

 

 

Portion Size Matters strives to help childcare providers feed their children in the healthiest ways. Learning good eating habits at the earliest of age can help kids lead healthy lifestyles as they grow. The kid’s portion plates teach children what and how much to eat of the recommended portions from all food groups. The individualized sections of the 8.5-inch plate come labeled with recommendations of all food groups. Simply fill each section and your little one is set for a healthy meal or snack.

 

 

The Portion Plates come in a variety of kid friendly bright colors, FDA approved, BPA-Free and Dishwasher safe for commercial and home use. The simple-to-use Portion Plate makes it easy for children to fill up their plate while teaching them healthy habits from a young age.

 

 

Remember, teaching healthy eating habits now can help ensure children grow into healthy adulthood. So order your Portion Plate today!

 

 

 

See More at www.portionsizematters.com

Also get FREE SHIPPING when you email deane@portionsizematters.com or call 501-993-6607 and tell them you want your MomTrusted.com Free Shipping on your plate order.

Extreme Parenting: The No Impact Man on Green Living with Kids

Colin Beavan and his family spent one year trying to take the term “green” to the extreme. By the time his book was finished and the documentary had launched, the No Impact Man had lived without electricity, a car or even throwaway diapers- not an easy feat with a toddler running around. Now, a few years after No Impact Man launched, Colin still strives to live as environmentally as possible. He is a vegetarian, an avid biker and has an apartment completely furnished with second hand furniture. He also heads NoImpactProject.org, a site dedicated to helping people get involved in the environmental agenda. Colin spends time visiting colleges and schools, publicly speaking about environmental issues and lifestyle. He’s also working on a book about how to live a life that’s both better for humans and the planet, which is set to hit shelves near the end of the 2013. MomTrusted talked to Colin about his environmental experiment and how any family can lead a greener life.

 

MomTrusted: Can you summarize the documentary and book No Impact Man?

Colin Beavan: It was a year in which my family and I lived as environmentally as possible in the middle of New York City. When I say that we lived as environmentally as possible, it wasn’t about making sure we did the recycling, but, for example, not making any trash at all or using a more efficient vehicle and actually trying to make no carbon emission through our transportation at all. We worked in all the areas from trash to consumption to travel to household operation, trying to live for a year making as little impact as possible.

 

MomTrusted: What were you hoping to gain?

Colin: I needed to ask this question: Is it possible to live doing more good than harm, environmentally speaking? Also does the modern, consumer lifestyle actually make us happy or is it possible that there’s a way of life that’s both better for us and better for the planet?

 

MomTrusted: What were the added challenges of doing this experiment with a toddler?

Colin: For one thing, she was in diapers and so obviously we couldn’t use throwaway diapers. We went on to cloth ones.

 

But I think that having a toddler made it easier in a lot of ways because I came to see everything through her eyes. For example, one time I went to pick her up from childcare and we were on our way home in pouring rain. She was riding my shoulders. I had an umbrella and I was struggling to keep the umbrella over her. Obviously in New York City, it’s hard to get a taxi when it’s raining, but if you can’t get in a taxi because you’re leading an environmental life experiment there seem to be lots of empty cabs around.

 

So we’re walking along, it’s pouring rain and I’m wrestling with the umbrella in the rain. The wind would blow and Isabella would start crying and the rain would hit her. I said, “I’m trying to keep you dry.” Then I realized she wasn’t crying when the wind blew the umbrella off of her. She was crying when I was keeping the umbrella over her because she wanted to feel the rain. So I took the umbrella down, we got soaking wet and splashed our way home. I thought, “What have we come to that we struggle to not feel the elements?”

 

In a lot of ways she wasn’t an extra challenge, but made it easier.

 

MomTrusted: How do you explain the concept of going green to your children?

Colin: It doesn’t need much explaining as far as the kids are concerned. For example, if you say to a kid, “So this is how our energy system works: What we do is we find a nice mountain and we blow the top off of it. We harvest the coal out of the mountain and, while we do that, we actually make it so that all the drinking water for the people down stream from the mountain becomes poison. So the people can’t drink the water anymore. Then we take the coal from the mountain and we throw it in a big fire and make electricity. When we burn that coal, it pumps this poison called carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and starts to make the planet warmer. It makes it harder for a bunch of species to survive and could actually make it harder for us as human beings to survive.” Now when you tell that story to children, usually they think, “What the hell is wrong with you grownups?”

 

So when it comes to explaining stuff, kids get it really well. It’s the grownups that have a hard time getting it.

 

MomTrusted: What advice would you give to a family interested in leading a more environmentally friendly lifestyle?

Colin: Look for those areas that are more environmental and help the family at the same time. For example, if the family is concerned about their diet, moving toward a non-processed, plant-based diet is good for the family and is good for the environment.  If the family’s concerned about not getting enough exercise, then look into ways that actually use your body to transport yourself. If money is an issue, conserve energy around the home. Move toward things that would actually improve your life.

 

Looking for a way to make naptime easier?

 

Happi-Nappi provides naptime necessities to make snooze time simple for children, care providers and parents with quality products. At Mom Trusted, we know how stressful childcare can be and we’re here to make it easier for you. We’ve found that Happi-Nappi’s cot sheets, mat sheets and nap bags will do just that!

 

 

Most states require each child to have both top and bottom sheets covering the cot or mat. Providing two separate pieces for every single child makes washing a hassle. Plus storing and keeping up with the covers becomes a mess. Happi-Nappi offers one unit instead of two. It saves lots of time because the entire lightweight naptime sheets or nap bags can be thrown in the wash for a quick cleaning. It makes the center look clean and crisp with matching sheets or nap bags. The children love the security of the attached pieces when they’re snuggling in for their afternoon naps.

 

 

The cute sheets and bags come in a variety of colors and patterns. The sheets are made with high quality USA sheeting materials. The nap bag is made with soft, quilted material. Each item is sewn closed on one side to make for easy opening and simple naptime. You will not find scratchy Velcro, inexpensive elastic or paper thin fabric used in any of our products. Every item is sewn with reinforced seams. Happi-Nappi offers high-quality products that are made right here in the U.S. and will stay in great shape for years to come.

 

 

Since the sheets and bags are nice and light, they’ll fold up easily to be stored on a shelf or in a cubby. They fold to the volume of a folded beach towel. It is much easier to store than a bulky sleeping bag or towels.

 

 

The sheets and nap bags even come with a sewn-in, oversized nametag for quick and easy identification. Order your Happi-Nappi’s today! When ordering, make sure you use the code “MT” to receive a discount of 15% off!

 

http://www.happinappi.com/

Build Your Childcare Resume

Putting together a resume can be overwhelming and challenging, but Mom Trusted is here to help. If you’re looking for the best way to build your childcare resume, we’ve got a few tips to help make the process easier and help your resume stand out:

 

Include the basic stuff

List your name, address, number, education and dates and locations with everything listed.

 

List only relevant experience

If you’re building a resume geared toward childcare, list any previous jobs or activities related to daycare, preschool, teaching and even camp counseling or nannying. Interested parties are likely to be interested in only former jobs related to children.

 

Don’t forget to explain

List two or three examples of tasks you were responsible for under each job. Be descriptive, but brief.

 

Ages are important

On childcare resumes, it’s important to include (often in the description lines listed above) the ages you worked with in each position.

 

Make your skills known

Do you know CPR? Are you a trained lifeguard? List any certifications related to health and safety. These are especially important to parents and care centers looking to hire.

 

References are key

Especially in a profession that deals with children. Childcare centers and parents want to take extra precautions to make sure their children are in good hands. If you have three to four references who will vouch for your responsibility and skills, list them right on the resume. Just make sure to give them a heads up before you do!

 

Why do you love kids?

Write a clever, but brief cover letter in which you describe why you want to work with kids. Be honest and open.

 

Have someone edit for you

Sometimes a second set of eyes makes all the difference. Have a friend or family member read through your resume and cover letter for any typos, grammatical errors and just to make sure everything is clear.

 

Once you have your resume completed, be sure to post all your information in MomTrusted so parents can learn more about your services and hire you! Get started here: http://momtrusted.com/getstarted

 

 

Sources:

“Cover Letters and Resume Samples.” Childcare Worker Resume Sample

“Sample Child Care Worker/Social Services.” About

“Childcare Resume Writing. What Should It be About?” Resume Writing Tips

Photo courtesy of Ambro/freedigitalphotos.net

Easy Earth Day Snacks for Kids

All the Earth Day education can be exhausting and make little ones hungry. What better way to reenergize then munching on some easy Earth Day snacks for kids? Here are a few simple ideas for Mother Nature oriented eats to nibble on:

 

All Organic

Go natural with back-to-basics fruit and veggie platters. Throw in some humus to dip the veggies in.

 

Dirt Pudding

Pour chocolate pudding into a cup and spring crushed chocolate cookie crumbs on top. Then throw in a gummy worm and voila! Dirt pudding!

 

Pine Nuts

They’re part of pine trees, after all! Plant some evergreens in your local park and then feed your kids pine nuts.

 

Earth Krispie Treats

Make Rice Krispie treats following your regular recipe. But to make them a bit more festive, add a few drops of blue and green food coloring. Then swirl the colors throughout before setting the bars.

 

Ants on a Log

Bust out the classic ants on a log. Smear some peanut butter on slices of celery and place a few raisins on each.

 

Trailmix

Mix together some dried bananas and apples with a variety of nuts (be sure to check if anyone has peanut allergies first!) and pretzels.

 

Sources:

-“Earth Day snacks and treats” Spoonful

-“Any good ideas for a class for Earth Day snacks?” Fertile Thoughts

-Photo courtesy of imagerymajestic/freedigitalphotos.net

Earth Day Crafts for Kids

What better way to teach kids about Mother Nature than getting their hands dirty? Mom Trusted has put together a list of Earth Day crafts for kids to help celebrate the holiday and the environment:

 

Papier-Mâché Globe

Blow a up a balloon and cover it with blue and green strips of tissue paper dipped in watered down glue. Let the project dry completely before drawing continents on it. Dry time usually lasts over night.

 

3-D Forest

Help your kids make a 3-D forest out of construction paper. For each tree, cut out two evergreen shapes out of green construction paper. Cut a long, vertical slit in one of the trees, leaving a ½ to 1 inch portion still connected at the top. Outline each side of the tree with glitter glue and let it dry. Then slide the slit tree down the center of the uncut one. Secure with glue or tape it needed.

 

Rainsticks

Make rainsticks by securing squares of wax paper with rubberbands on either end of a toiletpaper roll. Pour a handfull of beans or rice inside first. Then decorate the outside with painted images of nature.

 

Coffee Filter Earth

Make beautiful works of art our of markers, water and coffee filters. Color on the coffee filters with blue and green washable marker. Then dip the edges of the coffee filters in water and let it seep up the filters, blending the marker colors together. Let them dry and you’ll have beautiful Earth crafts to hang near a window (they look especially pretty when light shines through them like stained glass).

 

Sources:

-“Earth Day crafts and ideas” Pinterest

-“Earth Day crafts and projects” Enchanted Learning

-Photo courtesy of Grant Cochrane/freedigitalphotos.net