Private: Children’s Health Journal

DIY Valentine’s Day greetings that are made with love beat out store bought cards every time. Here are fun, easy and inexpensive ways for you and your kids to share the love with family and friends.

Stamp It
Stamping designs on plain paper is an easy way for kids to create their own Valentine’s cards. But instead of buying pre-cut rubber stamps, try stamping with things you have already available. Paper towel or toilet paper cardboard rolls are easy for little hands to hold and can be bent into the shape of a heart for stamping. Make a pretty bouquet of flowers with a bunch of celery. Just cut off most of the stalk, leaving a few inches of the base to use as the stamp. Even your little ones’ tiny thumbs can make an adorable heart stamp. Washable paint (Crayola makes one) makes for an easy clean-up.

No matter If you’re raising an infant, teen or in-between, there’s an app for you.  Here are a few of our favorites that get rave reviews from parents.

Baby Connect (Android and Apple)

Baby Connect (by SeaCloud Software) is a new parent’s best friend. This #1 activity logger is user-friendly and keeps track of all the daily details of caring for your new baby. With feeding timers, medicine tracking, vaccine lists, graphs and trending charts, it even lets you exchange information in real time with your spouse, babysitter or daycare provider. Plus it’s great for sharing information when you visit your doctor.

Lose 5 pounds. Join a gym. Our New Years’ resolutions often look like a dreary to-do checklist that’s usually forgotten within a few weeks. This year, let’s switch it up and make resolutions that help us connect with our kids. Here are a few ideas to inspire more happiness, fun, new discoveries and sharing in 2016.

Laugh More

Kids naturally laugh more than adults, and their silly giggles are contagious so let’s join in on the fun. Plus, laughing reduces stress and kicks in bonding hormones. It’s easy; for starters simply sing along to a funny song. Kids usually have a whole playlist in their heads, but if you need ideas check out Pandora’s free streaming of the kids station “52 Sing-A-Long Silly Songs”, with favorites like “Do Your Ears Hang Low”.