Keeping your family protected against biting mosquitoes and other bugs is important, but not at the cost of exposure to potentially harmful chemicals. Luckily there are safe bug repellents for kids that do the job without leaving you worrying about what you’re exposing your little ones to.
The Environmental Working Group has just released its recommendations for the best bug repellents for kids. Keep reading to find out the products you should be shopping for this summer.
The top three EWG recommendations are DEET, Picaridin and IR3535. Yes, you read that right––DEET is included in the EWG’s list. The important factor to note is the concentration level of DEET and the other two ingredients, in any bug repellent product.
According to the EWG, DEET is safe to use as long as you avoid products that are 100 percent concentrated and only use bug repellent with a maximum of 10 percent DEET. The only exception to this limit is if you’re using DEET to protect kids in an area known for ticks’ carrying Lyme disease bacteria or for Zika outbreaks. Then the EWG recommends a DEET concentration of 20 percent to 30 percent.
If you choose products containing Picaridin and IR3535, you should look for bug repellents containing no more than 20 percent of either. The EWG says that Picaridin is a great alternative to DEET because it is less likely to irritate eyes and skin.
The EWG does not recommend the use of “natural repellents” like castor, cedar, citronella, clove, geraniol, lemongrass, peppermint, rosemary and/or soybean oils because research indicates they are not the best choice.
Like many first time parents, when my daughter was born I signed her up for every activity, from baby yoga to music class, I could find. The goal was to make friends and to get out of the house, so as not to be too overwhelmed by the new normal of “parenthood.” What I found in those first experiences, was women who were willing to be more vulnerable and open their hearts to new friendships. Mamas bonded over breastfeeding, nutrition, sleep, play groups, and mama’s nights out to regain sanity. It truly felt like a community, where everyone was included and I felt lucky to be part of such an empowering group of women.
Fast forward to preschool. Groups of mom’s circle around each other after drop-off, chatting and sipping lattes. Even better are secret play dates with a select few families where allegiances form. Quickly, feels a bit like middle and high school cliques that you thought were a thing of the past. What happened to the empowering community you were a part of during those glorious baby years?
Suddenly, you fall into this trap of trying hard to fit in, if not for yourself, for your child—all in an effort to keep her from being a social outcast. You worry about inserting yourself into conversations without talking too much or too little. You stress about outfit choices and you spend copious amounts of time worrying about the number of play dates your child is invited to. It’s exhausting, and downright consuming.
But, then you somehow wake up from this fog, let go of the pressure to be perfect, and take on a whole new perspective. Maybe you don’t have to fit in with everyone and that’s ok! Maybe you’ll find your people while volunteering for a school event. Or perhaps your child has connected with a new friend and you invite her to a playdate at your house, and you find friendship when you meet her parents. You come to the realization that it’s fine not to be invited to every event, but focus on the people who include you and want to be part of your life. You make sure to greet everyone that you come into contact with and include everyone, even if you’re being excluded because that’s who you are.
All you can do is continue to shine and be your best self because in the end that’s really all that matters.
Shanna is a part-time elementary teacher, stay-at-home mommy to two beautiful girls and a blogger. She blogs about a range of topics that help make juggling parenthood with children a little easier. She loves to learn from her daughters and most of all laugh.
From how you feed your baby to the amount of screen time they should get, everyone has an opinion about the right way to parent and how to be a mom. While they’re certainly entitled to that opinion, that doesn’t mean you have to agree. And, as one mom’s viral Facebook post reminds us, you should never have to apologize for making your own choices.
Jennifer Lynn, mom and blogger on They Whine So I Wine, recently shared a message to all moms on Facebook with a post that has since been shared by nearly 20,000 users. In the post, she writes, “As women we worry so much about what other people think or what we think they might be thinking. We create judgments in our own heads. We hear undertone where it’s not even meant to exist. We over-analyze text messages. We worry why we didn’t get the invite. We see glances and whispers and assume they must be directed at us.”
She continues, “We waste so much of our time worrying about what other people’s opinions of us are. We try so hard to bend ourselves fifty different ways to fit a mold in hopes of somehow satisfying everyone else, only to leave ourselves feeling empty. But, why? For what?”
She goes on to remind moms everywhere that “this is your motherhood” and that we should stop worrying about everyone else’s opinion. “Stop apologizing. Stop worrying about what other people think. I know. I know. Heaven forbid we offend someone … GASP.”
If you’ve truly done something that warrants an apology, then, of course, you should give one, Lynn says, but “stop apologizing for things that are your choice. Stop doubting your own decisions. Stop looking over your shoulder. Stop trying to please everyone else.”
She concludes with some wise words to remember, “Be who you were made to be, not who others want you to be.”
LEGO bricks are awesome, but the pain of stepping on one is not. So what if there was a solution to preventing those tiny, pointy bricks from turning into hazards? One company thinks they have the answer with the Banderbox.
Designed by a parent who knows first hand the pain stray LEGOs can cause, CEO and Co-founder of Snark22, Jared Gistrap wanted to create a product that invited kids to be creative without worrying about losing those wonderful bricks in the carpet. “My grandfather stepped on LEGO bricks, my dad stepped on LEGO bricks, and now I am stepping on LEGO® bricks,” Gistrap said in a statement.
Snark22’s Banderbox is a LEGO storage container comprised of a “Sorting Surface” where mini master builders can lay out their bricks on an open surface that is contained by scooping walls and collapsing sides, making it easy to sift through the bricks without accidentally tossing them out of reach and into the wilds of carpet fibers. The box also features a Creative Zone, which is fitted with a LEGO compatible plate giving kids a spot to build their creations.
So how do you get your hands on one of these incredible boxes? While the Banderbox is not yet available in stores, you can score an early bird discount on the product by backing Snark22’s Indiegogo campaign which is launching soon.
For those of you who didn’t know, June is National Safety Month. There are a lot of months dedicated to different causes in order to raise awareness about different issues, but our kids are our whole heart, the love we have for them is indescribable. So being paranoid about their safety is completely normal. Sure, all those stories on the evening news are freak accidents that occur in very rare situations, but worrying is second nature to moms.
That’s why keeping yourself informed about the dangers of the world is so important. Simply knowing what’s going on and the odds of it happening to your child can ease your mind.
The kidnapping stories are horrifying and seem to be occurring more frequently each day. As much as parents do to keep their children safe, there are 800,000 children reported missing each year. However, there are some environments where children are at greater risk for kidnapping.
Your home is supposed to be the place where you feel most safe and protected but it’s also the place where your child is at the highest risk of abduction. Though this likely varies significantly dependent on city and neighborhood, homes are the location of approximately 1.43 abductions each hour. But no need to instantly freak out and flee your home, odds of kidnapping within the home are still only one in over 26,000.
The best way to make sure your child never becomes one of those statistics? Stay alert and increase protection. With the advancement of technology, you can own some of the highest-tech security gadgets at a relatively affordable cost. Introduce tools such as motion sensors or video cameras so that your eyes aren’t the only ones responsible for your family’s safety.
It’s also notable that 49% of abductions are considered “family kidnapping” meaning that the perpetrator is someone related to you. You love and trust your family, so it’s hard to believe that this could be possible. But unfortunately, not all abductions are committed by random, villainous strangers as they are stereotypically depicted.
The Second Most Dangerous Location is Outside
The highway, road, alley, street or sidewalk is the second riskiest place for abduction. This should come as no surprise but we should engrain it into our children to never walk alone outside after dark, especially not down a deserted alley. But how prevalent is kidnapping in this setting? The odds of abduction in this location are significantly lower than within the home at one in over 120,000.
The Happiest Place on Earth is Also the Safest
Despite amusement parks being a location well-known for being populated with children, this is the safest location under study. Maybe it’s due to the high surveillance, large crowds, or steep price of admission, but it’s safe to say that kidnappers do not frequent roller coasters and carnival games. Odds of abduction here are one in over 325 million so you can rest easy on worrying about taking your kiddos on the vacation of their dreams.
This isn’t meant to instruct you to avoid places or heighten your fears and worries, obviously, you can’t avoid your home. What’s more important is knowing where you’re at risk and knowing what you can do to potentially avoid it so your little one can play on!
Hey all, I’m Melody. I’m a part-time parenting and lifestyle writer but a full-time mom of both 2-legged and 4-legged family members. Forever trying to clean glitter off something or other.
Ever wonder how your favorite show stacks up against the rest? For the first time ever Netflix is releasing top ten lists of its most popular shows.
Netflix has always maintained secrecy over the performance of its streaming service, which can sometimes leave fans wondering and worrying how well their favorite show is performing and whether or not it will live to see another season. The streaming service is rolling out a new feature announcing the top ten most watched movies and shows of the week.
We want to help you find as much ~great stuff~ to watch on Netflix as possible. So here’s a look at the top ten most-watched shows and films in the UK in April 👀
The first top ten list was just released for Netflix UK with the promises of weekly updates to appear on the platform for users starting next week. The top show? Our Planet narrated by David Attenborough. Besides the overall top ten, Netflix also released top ten picks for series, film, documentaries, reality shows and more.
While Netflix U.S. has yet to release its own top ten list, many are speculating that testing the feature in on Netflix U.K. will lead to top ten lists on all of Netflix’s global services.
When my oldest was three months old, I flew to her grandparents feeling like I was headed to certain disaster. I was sure I hadn’t packed everything this colicky baby needed for soothing, that we would both get an incurable virus on the plane, and that I would not be able to figure out how to get the car seat in the rental. Like every new parent threshold, traveling ups the game. Going to the grocery store is hard enough, let alone crossing state lines. When I shockingly survived that first flight, a teeny tiny seed of confidence began to grow that maybe, just maybe, we were going to be ok.
Flash forward ten years, and two more children later, traveling has been embedded into the culture of our family life. We take long road trips in the summer and fly all over the country visiting extended family during school breaks. While memorable destinations have included glorious glaciers in Alaska, giant Redwood trees in California, and beautiful beaches in Mexico, it was our most recent trip to the Washington coast when I realized I had arrived at the most sacred spot yet.
It was a place within myself that was finally free: of worry, control, and expectations.
Trying to control every aspect of traveling and worrying about things going wrong never helped because inevitably, it did go wrong! We have had food poisoning in Santa Cruz, meltdowns in Disneyland, sleep strikes on 7 hour plane flights, wasp stings on islands, broken toes in the desert (not to mention the golf cart incident), and ear and eye infections in every time zone. We’ve forgotten underwear, swimsuits, favorite stuffed animals and passports. There was even the time security was called on us because our one year old was screaming so loudly. (It did not look good when the guard saw us playing cards right through it.)
I had finally reached that place that could look back at the adventures we have had and savor it all- the highs, the lows, the disasters, and the gems. In doing so, I could embrace the present adventure and truly let go.
When we work so hard and look forward to that family vacation, it can be natural to set expectations high. We think just because WE deserve it, our kids should naturally cooperate, sleep well, and shower us with gratitude. The truth is, routines get out of whack, they are overstimulated and sleep deprived, and someone is usually too hot, too cold, or too hungry.
With time on my side and experience under my belt, I started showing up to our trips with more acceptance and less striving for perfection. With this, I was able to enjoy the smaller moments: a board game with my 7 year old while the baby napped, a soak in the hot tub with my 10 year old, or a cup of coffee on the cabin porch. These moments grew in currency as much as the big tours and experiences.
I have realized that worrying and over controlling for problems that may never happen just isn’t helpful. There will be toileting accidents, sibling squabbles, and delayed flights. I can be as prepared as possible, stick to our family guidelines and some structure for routines, and I still will make sure to bring baby wipes and the medicine cabinet everywhere I go regardless of their age. Then I MUST let it go and just enjoy the ride. I only have seven more summers with my oldest and I refuse to spend them disappointed. What I will do is choose quality connection and use the inevitable traveling challenges to model flexibility, a sense of humor and solving problems with grace.
So what’s our next destination? It doesn’t matter, it’s all about the journey.
“I will not teach or love or show you anything perfectly, but I will let you see me, and I will always hold sacred the gift of seeing you. Truly deeply seeing you.” ~ Daring Greatly, Brene Brown
Julietta is a Positive Discipline Advanced Trainer, school psychologist, school counselor and mama of three. Her expertise includes early child development, autism, learning disabilities, anxiety and behavior disorders, as well as groups and classroom lessons based on positive discipline, social thinking and mindfulness. She is the co-founder of Sproutable.
Picture this: you’ve had a tough day with the kids, didn’t get enough sleep, are worrying about the future and still haven’t planned dinner. Sound familiar? The pressures of parenting catch up with all of us, but there’s a simple 20-minute hack to get rid of stress and The pressures of parenting catch up with all of us, but there’s a simple 20-minute hack to get rid of stress and you’ll want to try it, STAT.
A study by the University of Michigan recently published in Frontiers in Psychology has found that the key to reducing your stress hormone levels is taking a 20-minute walk in nature. Permission to get outside and enjoy nature has been granted!
The “nature pill” as the study coined it, lowers the stress hormone cortisol when you time to walk for at least 10 minutes, three times a week. Researchers found the hormone was lowered by at least ten percent and that’s all we need to hear!
When it comes to finding your piece of nature, it’s up to you. Anywhere you feel you’re coming into nature fits the bill––a city park, a forest or a lovely field. There are just a few catches to get the most out of your nature pill. First, you need to take your walks during the day. Second, no reading, texting, talking, social media or even exercising! Communing with nature may not take long to get the stress-relieving benefits, but it does need your full attention.
So the next time your partner comes home after a long day, be sure to tell them you’re just taking your nature pill before hitting the trail––alone.
We all know that being a mother is the toughest job in the world. There’s no shortage of work and worrying (but also love) that happens every minute of the day. To show some appreciation for all you ladies rocking the “mom badge” out there, we’ve rounded up some of the most inspirational motherhood quotes. As if there was ever any doubt that moms know best. Keep reading to see them all.
1. “When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child.” – Sophia Loren
2. “Sometimes the strength of motherhood is greater than natural laws.” – Barbara Kingsolver
3. “We have a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that women are strong.” – Laura Stavoe Harm
4. “There’s no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.” – Jill Churchill
5. “Most mothers are instinctive philosophers.” – Harriet Beecher Stowe
11. “A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dates all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.” – Agatha Christie
12. “The mother art is architecture. Without an architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization.” – Frank Lloyd Wright
13. “Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a mother.” – Unknown
14. “A mother is not a person to lean on, but a person to make leaning necessary.” – Dorothy Canfield Fisher
15. “Successful mothers are not the ones that have never struggled. They are the ones that never give up, despite the struggles.” – Sharon Jaynes
Becoming a mom is a life-changing experience and no matter how much you prepare for that big moment, it can take some time to adjust and find your new mom confidence. New research reveals just how long it actually takes for women to settle into their new lives as moms.
A recent survey conducted by OnePoll found that it can take almost 14 weeks for women to feel like they’ve gotten into a groove with their new roles as moms. The study examined the confidence levels of 2,000 new moms during the first few months after giving birth. Over half (53 percent) said that time was mostly spent worrying about their abilities as a mom.
A recent study published in the journal Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare had similar findings. The research revealed that it can take up to six months for moms to gain confidence. “About 25% of first-time mothers experienced a period with low maternal confidence, low maternal mood and high parental stress; yet, for most mothers, their confidence, mood and stress improved in the first 6 months after birth,” the study’s authors wrote.
The first few weeks as a new mom can be a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences unlike any you’ve had before. Learning how to care for your baby and balance your new role with your previous responsibilities can be challenging and as the research shows, it’s completely normal to to take some time to adjust.
