Mother Inferior

Free Summer Gift for Moms and Kids: Galacto Kids Educational Site

So, the summer's halfway over (can you believe it?), the kids are getting bored, and it's too hot to go outside. What's a mom to do?

Well, because of the generosity of a fellow mom-blogger and mom-preneur, you can give your kids--and yourself--the gift of a free membership to a brand-new educational website called Galacto Kidz.

That's right--your kiddos can play for free, the rest of the summer, using the code Beta649.

Here’s a little background about the site:

• Galacto Kidz was founded by blogger and mother of twins, Elizabeth Loennborn.
• Galacto Kidz is an interactive virtual world for children 6-13, set on board a cool spaceship.
• The site  provides a safe, fun and ad-free environment for gaming and informal education. 
• The site includes a variety of games that teach math, logic, typing, spelling, and vocabulary, as well as arcade-style games and an integrated social networking platform.
• Players choose an alien avatar that lives in a Pico Pod--on a spaceship that is searching for new galaxies.
• Players can interact with other players, travel around the spaceship, and visit other pods.
• Space dollars, called Gazingos, can be earned by successfully completing tasks or by winning games, and can be used to purchase items in the Galacto Kidz virtual world.
• Kids can chat with their buddies, and they can submit user reviews and user-generated content in creative writing, art, and video formats.
• Arcade play includes battle and matching games, among others.
• Galacto Kidz is designed with high-level safety features that address the security concerns of parents.
• The virtual world goes beyond the requirements of COPPA, the Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act.
• A Parent’s Portal allows monitoring of everything a child does. Parents can see which games their children are playing, view friends and buddies, and can even block specific buddies if they feel it necessary.
• The site logs and archives all chats and correspondence.
• If a parent ever has questions about a child’s activity, all chats are available for review.  Everyone in a room for any chat at any time can be identified.

Want to see for yourself? Visit Galacto Kidz and use the code Beta649.

A Scripture Treasure Hunt

Yesterday, we got snowed in because the boys' school and my office were both closed. It was a real "Snow Day," too. The white stuff lay in drifts all over the place, and the wind blew as only a Texas panhandle wind can.

So, in order to keep my kids from watching television all day--or killing each other!--I was inspired to create a scripture treasure hunt for them.

First, I looked up scriptures that had house-related words in them.  Then, I put the references on Post-it Notes. Finally, I hid the notes around the house. I gave the boys Deuteronomy 32:2 and a Bible, and they began to look up the verses to figure out where the next clue was hidden, based on the words in the verse. (I intentionally gave them some verses which could refer to multiple places in the house, so the hunt would last longer.) They had a lot of fun, and so did I!

Here are the verses I used, all from the NIV, and the places in the house they referred to:

Shower: Deuteronomy 32:2--Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

Oven: Joshua 9:12--This bread of ours was warm when we packed it at home on the day we left to come to you. But now see how dry and moldy it is.

Hot water heater: Genesis 31:40-This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.

Bed: Exodus 8:3--The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs.

Closet: Matthew 6:6--But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Stuffed animal (bear): Hosea 13:8--Like a bear robbed of her cubs, I will attack them and rip them open; like a lion I will devour them— a wild animal will tear them apart.

Door: Revelation 4:1--After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”

Fireplace: Psalm 78:14--He guided them with the cloud by day and with light from the fire all night.

Keep Your Toddler Busy--and Healthy!

I'm in the middle of a big move, and haven't had time to blog lately. But here's a great guest article by child fitness expert--and now digital picture book publisher--Wendy Toone: What can often be a parents' worst nightmare? A long wait in a waiting room or lobby with an active toddler or two. Does the thought of sitting in a small, stifling lobby or waiting with youngsters in tow make you cringe? If you're like me, one giant question races through your mind: How am I going to occupy my children so they aren't consumed with boredom which results in their running around or squabbling with each other? You can kill two birds with one stone by helping them with their fine motor skills via a few fun activities: 1. Fingers. Finger songs are great waiting games. "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "10 Little Indians", "Where is Thumbkin?" are all fun songs for kids. If it's a quiet room you're waiting in, whisper singing brings a new twist to the songs. Don't worry - Paula and Simon won't be judging you. You're a parent; you can get away with it. Don't forget about "Twinkle Little Star", which is a natural progression to practicing one's "ABC's"......weird how they're the same tune, huh? If you're really on a roll and there are others waiting with you, earn a gold star by getting everyone to do a rousing chorus of "The Wheels On the Bus". Party on!! 2. Toes. Yep, wiggling fingers counts as fine motor, but so does the wiggling of toes. Harkening back to the ballet lessons of my childhood, I remember learning "flex" and "point". Of course, all ballerinas are supposed to point their toes. But it takes muscle control to make little feet point down and flex up to the sky. Have your child sit down and extend their legs in front of them. Using imagery such as lighting a candle (flex their feet), blowing out the candle (point their toes), can sometimes teach the concept to very young children. 3. Carry a scarf with you. Not only can you accessorize at a moment's notice (fabulous, dahling!), but you'll be amazed how you can occupy yourself and your child. Smooth it out and teach shapes.... it's a square.... take one corner and fold it into a triangle.... can you make a rectangle? You can be silly, too. Be a ghost by putting it over your child's head. Turn him/her into Little Red Riding Hood. Tell the story if they've never heard it. (Don't forget to use funny voices to really hold their attention.) Use your imagination, and your child's imagination. And encourage them to manipulate the scarf to really get those fine muscle groups working. So the next time you and your child are waiting, don't let boredom get the best of you. Don't worry about your child getting out of control. Use the time to develop your child's fine motor skills, and watch how the time quickly goes by. I am often asked a question that sounds like this, "Other than fine motor and gross motor exercises, is there anything else I can do to pass the time with my child while waiting anywhere?" Do you know the answer? Hint - I Spy, children's digital picture books.

Wendy Toone is a child expert having owned and operated a leading franchise children's fitness center and now producing MobiStories, Digital Books for KidsTM, as well as being a mom to her two children. To experience the world of digital children's picture books, visit www.mobistories.com.

To download a free copy of Mommy's High Heel Shoes for your PC or Mac, visit MobiStories.com and enter the promo code: MHHS0710. The offer expires 8/22.Mommy's High Heel Shoes is also available for download as an app via the iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad in the iTunes store where you can check out more great story apps from MobiStories: To order a hard cover copy of Kristie Finnan's book, Mommy's High Heeled shoes, visit her at KristieFinnan.com. *This advertorial post is sponsored by the Role Mommy Writers Network.