Getting your child to do their chores...the easy way.

There is finally a way for parents to enjoy positive time with their children instead of nagging, complaining and pleading with them to do their chores. With My Reward Board, you will be amazed when your child practices their musical instrument, does their homework,or tries everything on their plate. Stops whining, stops bossing around their sibling, brushes their teeth, and gets ready for tomorrow. These are just a few of the things my children do happily now on a daily basis. They can't wait for tomorrow so they can do their chores all over again. What's the secret to happiness and less arguments? My Reward Board is the answer.
My Reward Board is a computer program that has interactive features for both children and adults. Their is a chore chart that enables the parents to choose the childs chores and record them on the chart. At the end of the day your child drop smiley's into the place where the flag is for the appropriate task and day. The animated happy face characters will even give a big thumbs up and cheer. They really have a great time. At the end of the week click the payout handle for star points they have earned.
Encouraging your child to meet their own specific goals (sharing, doing good deeds, or not whining) is easy with the motivational Goal Gizmo. When they achieve each goal an achievement certificate is printed and bonus star points are awarded, resulting in an accomplishment they are proud of and want to complete again.
Star Points are unique currency that keeps children motivated from week-to-week and month-to-month. Reward coupons for special privleges, treats and gifts are approved by you and then "bought" with star points they have earned and can be printed by your child. You decide which rewards are available, set the point cost of the rewards, and can even create completely new custom rewards suited to your child.
The cute and extremely smart Piggy Bank not only keeps track of your child's allowance (so parents - no more excuses!) but also lets your child set their own savings goal and what they are saving for. You set the amount of weekly allowance and can decide whether or not the allowance should be tied to your child's success at weekly tasks and chores or just given freely.
Suitable for framing or posting on the refrigerator the achievement certificates show your child's overall success and their completion percentage for each task or chore. An achievement certificate is also made available when they meet their goal in the Goal Gizmo.
You should use positive reinforcement and motivation whenever possible. But, as we know, there is sometimes a need for consequences for negative behavior. The optional Demerit Tracker lets you set the current number of demerits, and, if desired, causes their allowance to be lost for the week if the demerit count is too high. You can specify how many demerits until they lose their allowance.
This is a terrific program that has made my life a whole lot easier to manage. I no longer have to fight with my children to do their chores and it is a lot more peaceful and clean in my house. I don't know how I ever lived with out this program.
On the My Reward Board website which is: http://www.myrewardboard.com You can download a free 15 day free trial. After that, once you see that it will work for you the program is $19.95 and it's yours to use forever. That's a great investment in your and your child's life. Definitely worth the money. Try it and let me know what you think. Happy Parenting!

STRONG FAMILIES HAVE MEMBERS WHO GIVE OF THEMSELVES

I found this article and wanted to share it with everyone. Below is a link to the page where it is found. Building a strong family is worth the time and investment. With the holidays fast approaching this is a perfect chance to start building those relationships.

During the holiday season, people often believe that the only gift they can give is something expensive or store bought. It is not necessary to spend money to give someone a meaningful gift. A handmade gift or a promise to babysit once a month can be more meaningful than a gift you buy. Remember, the best gifts come from the heart.

Here are some holiday gifts to make:

Use your hobby skills, such as painting or woodworking, to make unique holiday gifts.

Give a package of coupons redeemable for chores you'll do during the year: wash the car, clean the garage, cut the grass, vacuum the house, iron the clothes. There are many chores to choose from!

Write a letter to each family member. Include things you appreciate about that person, fun memories shared together, and shared jokes. Type the letters, make covers for them, and wrap them as gifts. They'll still be treasured when store-bought gifts are long forgotten.

Put together a photograph album with pictures of family activities from year to year. This is an ideal gift for a grandparent or a grown child who has left home.

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES:
1. Address and mail holiday greeting cards.

2. Work together on gift ideas.

3. Visit a friend or a relative who lives alone or in a nursing home.

4. Adopt a family through your church or other local organization. As a
family shop, wrap, and deliver gifts for them.


For this and many more articles on tips to building strong families visit this site.
http://www.nncc.org/Parent/sf.series.html

Moms and Dads: Take a break, RELAX and ponder on this...

Why do banks charge you a "non-sufficient funds fee" on money they already know you don't have?

Why do you press harder on a remote control when you know the battery is dead?

Isn't Disney World a people trap operated by a mouse?

Why do they lock gas station bathrooms? Are they afraid someone will clean them?

Why do you have to "put your two cents in"...but it's only a "penny for
your thoughts"? Where's that extra penny going to? Taxes?

Wouldn't it be nice if whenever we messed up our life, we could simply
press Ctrl Alt Delete and start all over?

Why do you click on start to exit Microsoft Windows?

Why is it good to be a Daddy's girl, but bad to be a Momma's boy?

When you blow in a dog's face, he gets mad at you,
but when you take him on a car ride, he sticks his head out the window.

I just thought it would be fun to take a break from the daily grind and have a little fun pondering on things for awhile. Have a fun-filled day. See you again soon.

The importance of communicating with your child!

Did you know that on average a mother spends less than 30 minutes a day talking to her children. The average father only 15 minutes a day. There is definitely a problem with communication in the average American home. Few subjects in parenting are as fundamental, or as important, as communication. Humans function so much by language, whether implicit or explicit, that learning how to communicate effectively affects virtually every aspect of family relations, and interaction with others outside of the family. A child needs to see that their point of view is respected and they should be allowed to discuss their opinions without fear of persecution. When given this opportunity to communicate openly with the parents children will learn with time and persistence that they don’t know as much as adults and will seek an adults input. The parents need to being willing to listen attentively and fully to the child’s point of view. The child’s honest opinion of what they have observed often gives a parent insight to how the child is viewing the world around them and reminds them of what it was to be that age. After listening to your child, repeat in your own words what you have heard them say. This reinforces the fact that they have been listened to, and also gives you an outlet to give your child some "parental advice" that they so desperately need at this time in their life. The next time your child wants to talk help them, help yourself and help your relationship. Stop whatever you are doing completely, look directly at your child, dropping to their level if necessary and listen to what they are saying completely without interrupting them before you respond with your comments.

My limelight...

As a parent I strive for perfection and recognition. It makes me feel awesome to see what I have accomplished. My article Benefits of Wheatgrass juice was featured on the front page of helium today. This really made my day, if your interested in viewing it...check it out at helium.com I'm not sure how long it will be on the featured homepage, but regardless this has made me one happy individual. Thanks for your support.

Domino's Pizza Making it easy for on the go dinner!

Domino's Pizza just made an on the go parent's job of dinner a whole lot easier. Now customers who have web-enabled cell phones can place their order from nearly 2,500 of Domino's 5,128 U.S. stores on mobile.dominos.com. Here's how it works. From a web-enabled cell phone (supported by any carrier) visit mobile.dominos.com Then, you enter your favorite pizza, side-item and drink order and then enter the delivery address. If you are paying by credit card, enter your credit card information which is transmitted over Domino's secured network. Be at the address you placed the delivery for in about 30 minutes and you've got dinner. This is a great option for people who are very busy with other activities...like being a full time parent and who don't always have a computer or phone book handy, who carries these things anyway? But we all carry our cell phones...use them to order dinner and relax with the kids and a pizza!

How women can juggle employment and a family

Women tend to "wear numerous hats" in modern society. These "hats" are usually things like: Wife, Mother, Nurse when the family is ill, Cook, Counselor, and Caretaker. The majority of women are also trying to juggle a career. Women must find a way to balance both her family and her career. Although it is not always easy there ARE indeed ways to balance everything.

The stress and eventual breakdown of performing all the positions can lead to things such as: Strain on her relationships with people she must interact with. A deterioration in health. Anger, depression, anxiety and lead to possible substance abuse.

Here are a few ways to manage a family and career. Set goals both short and long term, periodically check to make sure that you are still attaining your goals in life, both personally and career oriented. Know your priorities, set aside a specific time or day of the week for family time. Make time for yourself, and also keep work problems at work. Never bring them home with you. Have supportive people in your life that will offer help if you need it. A babysitter so you can go out for a night on the town and just relax, etc... No matter how bad things seem it is always a good idea if you can find things that make life a little easier. Rewards for yourself, a chocolate bar, a massage, a bubble bath, a day at the spa. These things will encourage you and revitalize your body and mind. Never give up. It will get easier with time.