Join Me for the Juicy Juice #UltimatePlaydate Twitter Party plus $550 in Prizes on Thursday (5/29) at 11am EST! #shop #cbias

Do you love a good Twitter Party? You know I do and I’m excited to co-host a party about creating playdates that combine learning and fun! On Thursday, May 29th, at 11:00am EST, please join us for the #UltimatePlaydate Twitter Party, where we’ll be discussing how playdates can be opportunities to develop motor and social skills while encouraging independence, AND of course, giving you a chance to win prizes!

As someone who has enjoyed sharing fun learning activities with her readers, it's no secret how much I love watching my children experience learning through creative and imaginative play.  Our 7 year old twins' idea of the ideal playdate would be berry-flavored Juicy Juice Fun Size juice boxes served with string cheese for a snack plus an assortment of Crayola markers and an endless supply of drawing paper.  Throw in a roll of tape and watch where their imaginations take them!  What do you do to spark your children's imaginations?  Join me at the #UltimatePlaydate Twitter Party and tell me all about it!

Specially marked packages of Juicy Juice products from April through September will deliver up to $3 off coupons savings on Crayola products such as Color Wonder and My First Crayola. There will also be $1 off Juicy Juice Instant Redeemable Coupons applied to special Crayola Color Wonder and My First Crayola products.


Join me and RSVP for the #UltimatePlaydate on SoFabChats!


DATE: Thursday, May 29th, 2014

TIME: 11:00am - 12:00pm ET

PRIZES: 5 – $100 Walmart Gift Cards

EARLY BIRD PRIZE: 1 – $50 Walmart Gift Card

HOSTS: @KellysLuckyYou, @LaughWithUsBlog, @_Karen, @FrugalGreenMama, @JManMillerBug

RULES: #UltimatePlaydate Twitter Party Official Rules

RSVP & PARTY GRID: #UltimatePlaydate Twitter Party Page


TWEET TO SHARE:

RSVP for #UltimatePlaydate Twitter Party 5/29 11am ET. Prizes! Rules http://t.co/L9jcmTeMgK #shop pic.twitter.com/G9wMC4mk0r
— Karen Coutu (@_Karen) May 20, 2014

How To Participate In A Twitter Party on SoFabChats!

TIP: How to join a Twitter Party – sign in! Before party starts, click on the green “Sign In On Twitter” bar at the top of the page!

TIP: Who to follow at a Twitter Party? Follow the Party Team by clicking on the Twitter handle links on the RSVP page!

TIP: Want to win Twitter Party prizes? RSVP by clicking on RSVP button before you join the party, follow everyone on the Party Team, and tweet with the party hashtag during the party to be eligible!

TIP: How to win the Early Bird prize? Watch for chance to share a tweet when you RSVP for chance to win!

TIP: Special deals and brand coupons? Keep that options checked when you RSVP for the party!

TIP: New to Twitter parties? Watch your column and Party Team tweet columns – they are slower paced and easier to follow!

TIP: Where to find Twitter Parties? Check out the SoFabChats Twitter Party Calendar to find more fun parties to attend!

Find more helpful Twitter Party Tips on SoFabChats!

Finding Balance With Asperger's: Tools for Left-Handed Children with Special Needs

In addition to having Asperger’s, my 5 year old son, Quinn, is left handed. Being left handed when most things are set up for right handers makes things more difficult for Quinn, but when you add his fine motor delay to that, he has even more challenges to overcome. When I saw the Therapy Shoppe’s Lefty Survival Kit, I knew that I wanted to try out what this kit had to offer.

This occupational therapist-developed kit helps parents and teachers provide lefties with helpful and effective classroom tools. This kit contains 2 lefty spiral notebooks, 3 different pencil grips, and custom handwriting board that automatically places and keeps paper at the right angle for left handed people, and 2 different pairs of lefty scissors (blunt tip and regular). 

Quinn loved the lefty notebook and scissors and, being a lefty myself, I also can appreciate the “backwards” spirals and face of the scissor edge to make writing and cutting easier. We really love the “claw” pencil grip that was included, and it seems to be the one most suitable for Quinn. My favorite thing though is the custom handwriting board. This unique board helps Quinn so much because he doesn’t have to worry about holding his paper correctly to write, thus giving him the ability to concentrate on making his handwriting neat and legible. This board has been so helpful to us and I highly recommend it.

(Click any photo to enlarge)

All these tools would be handy for any lefty you know, but would be a lifesaver for a lefty on the spectrum. You can buy this kit for $33.99 at www.therapyshoppe.com.

Thank you to the Therapy Shoppe for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon.

Children's Play - How Children Learn and Have Fun At The Same Time

Babies and toddlers are incredibly smart, and pick up things they see around them. They absorb things from their environment like a sponge, observing and imitating. The rate at which children learn in the first years of life is never duplicated in later years. This is why teaching children at this age various skills, such as having an ear for multiple languages, is a great idea- it's much more difficult in later years to develop certain skills.

There are different ways to teach children, and a popular idea that I love is known as unstructured play, where children are not provided with specific toys to focus on, zoned into special play areas, or sat in front of a TV to watch specific things. My 19 month old son loves it too, because he basically has his run of things, and it's amazing what he does.

Basically, I let little man have his pick of toys, tools, or gadgets while I supervise him, and he picks what he is naturally drawn to, to play with, explore, and learn about. The effects of this are incredible- my son has attempted to wash dishes, can use a Tassimo to make cappuccino, can dress himself in pants and a shirt, can insert a DVD, turn on the TV and play a movie- all things I never taught him. I simply let him have fun, and these are the things he attempts (from observation and memory) and masters. A great side effect of this is that he is learning what he is good at and what he enjoys doing, and so am I. I am learning more about my son, and it's fascinating to watch how children learn and figure things out. Other benefits include expanding his creativity, stretching skills such as problem solving, and learning to have fun without depending on an electronic gadget or toy.


What are ways to try this with your child?

1. If you are in the habit of providing your child with things to entertain them, pull back and see what they pick up or express an interest in. If it's safe, allow them to play with it. I let my son play with my camera, "tools" for tots (mini-sized, safe version of adult tools), locks and keys, gadgets with buttons . . .  whatever he shows an interest in that is safe.
2. If your child is used to watching TV or playing with certain toys and doesn't seem to know what to do without them, feel free to suggest things, take out paints or craft supplies, etc to help them get their own creative juices flowing. Let them do what they want (within reason) with what you offer, and they will learn cause and effect, how to manipulate and maneuver things, etc. Your child may create a fort, figure out their own version of origami…the possibilities are endless and a joy to see.
3. Supervise them. While unstructured play can be a lot of fun and a great way to learn at the same time, as with all play, children should be supervised and not left alone (unless in your home with nothing hazardous around). It's also fun to take pictures or videotape them exploring, creating, and having fun for memories…just don't make them stop to pose for pictures.

Penelope is a mom of one toddler and talks about how to have a happy family, relationships, recipes, beauty and more on her site Penelope's Oasis.

Review: Amazing Minds - The Science of Nurturing Your Child's Developing Mind with Games, Activities, and More

Every parent’s question: What can I do to help my child be as happy and smart as possible? Finally, a clear answer is given in Amazing Minds, by parenting experts Jan Faull, MEd and Jennifer McLean Oliver, PhD. Faull has taught parent education, child development, and behavior guidance for over 25 years and she is known as the baby brain and clever toddler expert at BabyZone.com. Oliver is a cognitive psychologist and independent consultant who provides research and analysis of topics in cognitive science, including development and early learning. Both clearly know what they’re talking about in this book.

Did you know that babies as young as one day old can differentiate your face form that of a stranger? Or that a six month old already knows what happens when moving objects collide with stationary ones therefore a simple game with ramps and balls can encourage learning at that age? This book is chocked full of information about early learning in babies and toddlers and comes complete with many great ideas to encourage learning at each age and even deals with appropriate discipline for younger children.

As a mother and daycare provider, I really enjoyed this book. It was really nice to read about what makes our youngest family members “tick”. I particularly enjoyed learning about what their little brains are like as they develop and ways to nurture their ever-growing knowledge. I wish I had gotten to read this early, when my own children were babies and toddlers, but will definitely use what I’ve learned with my littlest daycare children. I think this is a must-read for any parent or people who work with children and it’s information is invaluable and could change your child’s life.

Amazing Minds: The Science of Nurturing Your Child's Developing Mind with Games, Activities, and More can be found in paperback on Penguin.com, Amazon.com, and at other major book retailers.

Thank you to the Penguin Group for sending us a sample copy of this book free of charge to base this review upon.