Pinecone Turkeys

From Family Fun . . .

This is one turkey that won't get eaten this Thanksgiving. Your kids can make a flock to decorate the dinner table -- or for all the kid guests to take home as favors.


Materials
Yellow and red felt
Tacky glue
Googly eyes
Brown pom-poms
Pinecones
Pipe cleaners

Instructions
1.For each turkey, cut out a yellow beak and a red wattle from felt. Then glue the beak, wattle, and a pair of googly eyes onto a pom-pom to create the turkey's head.
2.Glue the pom-pom head to the tip of a pinecone. Allow the glue to dry.
3.Wrap a pipe cleaner around the middle of the turkey's cone body, starting from the top and twisting it together a few times on the underside. Separate the ends of the pipe cleaner (below the twists) and bend each tip into a 3-toed foot.
4.For the turkey's tail, individually wrap 3 or 4 pipe cleaners around the back of the pinecone, starting from the underside and twisting them together a few times on the top of the pinecone to secure them. Then loop both ends of each pipe cleaner to shape tail feathers.

For video instructions visit http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/tiny-toms-661426/.

Autumn Cornstalk Craft

From Family Fun . . .

Add a festive touch to your holiday table by filling a vase with colorful paper cornstalks.


Materials
Natural-colored raffia paper
Scissors
Glue
Yellow poster board
Colored tissue paper


Instructions
1.To make each stalk, cut three 18-inch lengths of natural-colored paper twist (sometimes called raffia paper). Untwist them, then trim the edges to resemble corn husks.

2. Fan out the husks so that they overlap and use a few drops of glue to hold them together.
3.From yellow poster board, cut out an ear of corn (about 10 inches long and 3 inches wide) and glue it atop the husks.
4.Now crumple a bunch of 3-inch colored tissue paper squares to create rounded kernels and glue them to the ear. Lastly, gather the husk bottoms and tie them together with a strip of raffia.


For more from Family Fun visit http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/paper-indian-corn-664994/.

15 Ways to Thank Your Nanny

By Nannies from the Heartland staff

As we approach Thanksgiving and the December holidays, families often ask us how they can thank their amazing nannies. Here are some ideas from the Nannies from the Heartland staff!

Helping Tweens Transition

4 Ways to Manage Your Pre-Tween's Unpredictable Behavior

Mature one minute, having a meltdown the next. Welcome to the erratic behavior of a pre-tween. Experts demystify this new phase.

By Heather Gowen Walsh from Parents Magazine

Within just half an hour, my son, Jack, 8, pours his little sister some milk, begs me to let him walk to the bus stop by himself, fights with his younger brother over an Iron Man toy, and then zones out, almost missing the bus. Jack's behavior swings from that of pre-tween to preschooler. What gives?

"At 7 and 8, a child's brain is in the midst of huge shifts," explains Caron Farrell, M.D., Ph.D., a child and adolescent psychiatrist at the Seton Mind Institute, in Austin. "It's almost as if children this age see how older kids and adults act, and want to behave that way—but after a certain amount of time their brain says, 'I'm done!' " Plus, while they have the physical power to handle all sorts of tasks, their mental abilities and concentration still lag. We'll help you and your kid through this frustrating time.

Increase Responsibility
New chores will help bolster his concentration skills and give him the confidence he needs to move into the tween years, says Russell Reiff, M.D., a developmental pediatrician at Kaiser Permanente in San Francisco. Brainstorm responsibilities that you both think he might be able to handle, such as packing his lunch, folding his laundry, or cleaning his room. Praise his effort—not the end result. "A 7-year-old isn't going to put away his clean clothes as neatly as you would, at least at first, but the point isn't perfection, it's skill-building," says Dr. Reiff.

If your child suggests a task that isn't safe for kids his age—like making pancakes on the stove or walking to the park on his own—don't dismiss his idea with "you're not old enough yet." Instead, tell him why the task is unsafe and when the two of you could discuss it again.

Rethink Routines
You might think that your child is too old for routines and that she should be able to handle bedtime or getting ready for school without constant reminders from you. But she needs structure now even more than ever. That's because her "executive function" skills—the ability to organize and break down the steps of a task—are still maturing. They're only slightly more advanced than they were at age 5 or 6, although her responsibilities have grown far more complex than they were in kindergarten, says Dr. Farrell.

For instance, Lauren Spataro, of Darien, Connecticut, had to keep tabs on her 8-year-old daughter, Gracie, for several weeks before she got the hang of her new after-school routine. "In the beginning of the school year, I'd talk her through opening her backpack, taking out her lunch box and throwing away trash, putting the reusable containers in the sink, and getting her homework out of her binder," she says. "Now she knows the drill, but I was surprised by how long it took to get there." One strategy to help a child commit a routine to memory: Have her write down each step—and post the list in her bedroom or on the fridge.

Encourage Empathy
Up until this point, kids have still been pretty egocentric. Suddenly, they develop a greater ability to put themselves in other people's shoes. "This marks a huge leap in their moral development," says Dr. Farrell. "No longer do they obey rules just because they don't want to be punished. Now they obey rules because they don't want to hurt other people's feelings or—more important—they want other people's approval, especially that of their teachers."

To promote this behavior, Dr. Farrell suggests praising your child when he does something kindhearted, whether it's pushing his little sister on the swings at the park or holding the door open for another family at the mall. It's also a good time to help a charity. For instance, you could ask him to choose between collecting clothing donations for a homeless shelter or selling hot chocolate at a yard sale to raise money as a family for the local children's hospital.

Play Together
In public, your 8-year-old may not even want you to stand next to her, but don't assume she feels the same way at home. In fact, kids this age still enjoy spending time with their parents, says Dr. Reiff. Change your family activities so they seem more "grown-up" to your child. For instance, swap Chutes and Ladders for Uno, or instead of reading a single story at bedtime, tackle a chapter of a book like Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone or Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which your child might not be up to reading on her own.

Originally published in the November 2012 issue of Parents magazine.

Happy and Safe Halloween

Halloween can be a fun holiday, but a bit of planning will ensure it's a safe holiday, as well. Here are some tips for your family.

Costumes:

• Bright and/or Reflective - consider adding reflective tape to costume or treat bags
• Shoes that fit well
• Costumes short enough to prevent tripping or entanglement
• Non-toxic makeup and decorative hats are safer than a mask that can limit range of vision. If using a hat it should fit properly so it doesn't slide over the eyes
• Costumes made using hoodie sweatshirts and sweatpants are very comfortable, warm and easy to make yourself
• If purchasing costumes, make sure everything is labeled flame resistant
• Look for accessories that are safe for the child and others
• Flashlights for escorts and/or children should have fresh batteries

Pumpkin Decorations:

• Small children can draw the face on their pumpkin with a marker leaving the carving to an adult
• Consider a flashlight, glow stick or twinkle lights instead of a candle to light your pumpkin
• If using a candle, a votive is the safest choice
• Candle lit pumpkins should be located on a sturdy surface and away from flammable objects and should not be left unattended

Trick or Treat Safety at Your Home:

• Keep your home safe to visiting children by making sure that the porch, front yard or driveway area is clear of obstacles (toys, bikes, decorations, garden hose, etc.)
• Make sure outdoor lights are in working order and provide enough light for young children and parents to walk
• Leaves can be slipery, so it's best to have them swept from sidewalk, porch or steps
• Make sure pets are secure for their safety and the safety of trick-or-treaters

Out and About Safety Tips:

• Children should always be accompanied by an adult
• If older children are going alone, preview their route and agree on a time to return and stay with their group at all time. Consider having a cell phone with the group.
• Only go to homes with a light on and never enter a home
• Use the sidewalk and travel on well lit streets
• Don't cut across yards or travel up alleys - especially for older children out together
• Cross street at established crosswalks and corners - never between parked cars

Halloween Health:

• A good meal prior to parties or trick-or-treating will help discourage children from filling up on Halloween treats
• Children should return home to sort and check treats with adult supervision
• Non-food treats are a nice option to hand out at your home - pens, pencils, crayons and coloring books or stickers can be a nice alternative
• Non-sweet treats are another option - packages of crackers, raisins, sugar-free gum, cheese sticks or even a juice box
• Try to ration treats for the days following Halloween

Ghost Cookies

by Kelly Miller

For the past seven years I have made these cookies with the children I care for.  They are quick and easy to make because they require no baking!  Have fun!  I have enjoyed making these cookies with toddlers through school age children.

Ingredients:
          1 package Nutter Butter cookies
          1 package almond bark
          chocolate chips
          sprinkles, if desired

Melt almond bark.  Dip Nutter Butter cookies in almond bark; completely cover.  Set cookie on waxed paper.  Decorate with chocolate chip eyes, and sprinkles, if desired.  They look like ghosts!

Partnering with Your Child's Teacher

It's Parent Teacher Conference time and it got me thinking about how we partner with schools and teachers. I love to check out other blogs and online sites. This posting came up and you may also find it interesting. As a nanny I was also part of the teacher-parent partnership - volunteering in the classroom, going on field trips, supporting the child with their homework were just some of the ways I was involved. This article is just one parent's perspective.



How Do You Partner with Your Child’s Teacher?

From Blogger Jolene

I’m a big believer in my kids’ education, and I’m also a big advocate of partnering with my kids’ teachers. Sometimes, however, it’s a challenge to partner with a teacher.

Fortunately, I have a lot of friends who happen to be teachers. I have a sister who is a teacher, and my mother and grandmother are retired teachers, so I feel lucky to have inside information about what teachers say about working with parents. When I hear their stories, I then understand why it’s sometimes hard to partner with a teacher.

Because of budget cuts,