We are not afraid to eat out with our kiddos. (In fact, I think we eat out too much, but that’s a different story.) They all know how to behave at a restaurant, for the most part, and are generally quiet and cooperative, at least for a little while.

The key is to provide the kiddos with plenty of activities to occupy them. We generally have on hand the disposable place mats and crayons, from Classy Kid, that they can color on just in case we are dining at a restaurant that does provide a coloring menu or Etch-a-Sketch. We also make sure to have sippy cups, for the littlest ones, and one of their favorite toys.

Sometimes there is just nothing you can do to avoid spills and messes. I mean, isn’t that really why you eat out in the first place; so you don’t have to clean up?

Parent Bloggers Network and Burger King would like to hear our eating out horror stories. We don’t have many, but one that sticks out to me was when we were out with our good friends just before Christmas. You may remember the story…

We were all having a nice sushi dinner with Phil and Cami. At this particular restaurant there was nothing for the kids to do, and the booster seats sat precariously on the chairs (my first clue something was going to go wrong!). Ben started squirming in his booster seat, and one of the lovely servers came over and started telling him to be careful – You know, kind of looking at me to take care of him. (nice, huh?) Yeah well, because my kiddos sit in boosters quite often and had never before had issues, I told her that he was okay, and continued eating (yes, and talking).

No sooner than I put another bite in my mouth, Buddy Boo FELL OUT OF HIS CHAIR, right on his face. I jumped up, grabbed him, and sat back down to eat my humble pie. Well, my poor baby began bleeding everywhere. Oh, and he was screaming, too… I could see the waitress telling the others, “I tried to tell her…”

Ben was fine after a bit – He did manage to escape with only fat lips and a sore nose, but that was the last time he sat on a booster in a restaurant, unless it could be secured the the chair!

This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network as part of a sweepstakes sponsored by Burger King Corp.

There is nothing that irks kids more than uncomfortable clothing (except for maybe their siblings). Whether it be socks, tags on the t-shirts, or undies that ride up, it can totally impede their play.

Worry-no more! Hanes is here to provide the most comfortable underclothes with a Comfort Fit Promise. Hanes Comfort Fit Promise guarantees better-fitting and more comfortable basic essentials for boys and girls. (The blue Hanes Comfort Fit Promise can be found on select product packs and is the best way to kick-off a new and comfortable school-year!)

Check out the Hanes Comfort Fit Promise – if the undies are not comfortable, you can get your money back! You can even find specially marked packages offer a free pair!

Be sure to also check out the Parent Bloggers Network - They will be having a blog blast on 8/22o where you can win some Hanes-wear for your own kiddos. You won’t want to miss it!

With six kiddos in the house who are constantly wanting something fun to do, I am always on the lookout for games and activities that we can play and do together. The games that jump out at me are those that teach or train some area of the mind or body.

The Parent Bloggers Network introduced my family to Rapido, from the Discovery Channel Store. With Rapido you think fast, and move even faster, as you collect colored bamboo marbles to match a special pattern. My kiddos have not only had so much fun picking up the marbles with their bamboo tubes, but they’re building color and pattern recognition skills, too!

Do you believe that your baby can learn to read even before they can talk? It’s possible!

Your Baby Can Read!, an early language development system, was developed by Dr. Robert Titzer, a dad who taught his 9-month-old daughter to read words, even before she could speak them. Dr. Titzer extensively researched infant and learning development and created this program as a result of his vision of “making the world a better place by allowing children greater opportunities and successes throughout life by developing reading skills early.”

Thanks to the Parent Bloggers Network I had an opportunity to try the Your Baby Can Read! system with my children. This program consists of 5 DVDs and are especially appealing to the 2-4 year old crowd, however they claim to be created for even a 3-month-old in mind.

I was excited to show the dvds to my little ones, but couldn’t help but be just a tad bit skeptical. Josh, just shy of 4 years-old, loved the Starter disk… He was so excited at the possibility of learning to read, that he diligently reminded me to allow him to watch it every day, for several weeks. You see, the program works best if you show each disk a number of times a day for up to a month, in order for the information to “stick” before moving on to the next.

The Your baby Can Read! system includes lots of neat stuff. Each dvd contains many fun activities and engaging dialogue, and shows words that correspond with the spoken word and a picture. The dvds are full of songs, with the words shown karaoke style, so the child will associate the words sung with the spoken word. A series of flashcards are included, as well, each showing a picture to match the word.

In addition to showing each disk at least twice a day, you are encouraged to reinforce what the child is learning by practicing with them using the flashcards. I found this time to be a great time to teach the signs for each of the words as well.

I’m going to be honest here. While I believe the videos could aid in teaching a baby to read, my younger two kiddos would not sit still long enough to even make it through an entire dvd. (They won’t even watch a full episode of their favorite shows – They would rather watch their older siblings!) Even Josh lost interest after a few weeks. He is able to recognize a few words, but is that because I work with him every day or is it because of the Your Baby Can Read! dvds? Hard to know, for sure.

This program definitely could work for the little ones who enjoy watching shows with children engaging with others, a variety of animals, shapes, and colors. The key to Your Baby Can Read! is that it will aid in teaching your child whole language and phonics’s using a combination of sight, sound, and interaction.

I truly believe that there is nothing that beats one on one time with your baby, or that any thing can take the place of a human teacher… YOU can teach your baby to read! But, you may want to check out Your Baby Can Read! to help.

Did you know that little ones can learn a second language just as naturally as their own, if you expose them to it at a young age? Well, I didn’t want to miss this “window of opportunity,” so I started my search for the best program for our family. Shortly after my quest began, The Parent Bloggers Network made it possible for me and the kiddos to sample the Whistefritz Spanish Language DVDs. I figured that this would be a wonderful enhancement to our learning process.

We received two Spanish full immersion DVDs – Los Animales and Vamos a Jugar. These delightful programs are full of songs, puppet shows, and engaging play, while exposing my little ones to tons of Spanish dialogue.

Los Animales is the favorite around here. Ben and Noah love the fun skits and songs that teach them all about animals. They repeat the names of the animals in Spanish and practice the sounds that each animal makes. They have even begun singing the songs with Maria!

I guess it can’t hurt that they watch them over and over, huh?

With the help of Jenifer Fox and her book, Your Child’s Strengths, I have begun the life long journey of helping my children find their strengths; their learning strengths, their activity strengths, and their relationship strengths.