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How to dress for Office, Day and Formal while pregnant

  Guest post
Finding out that you’re expecting is one of the greatest

joys in life, but it’s certainly does not come without its nuisances. In

addition to dealing with the sickness and not feeling like yourself, you also have

to deal with a growing and changing body. For expectant mothers this is

extremely frustrating and many fall into a trap of thinking that they’ll only

be comfortable in bulky t-shirts and sweats. This myth can make moms-to-be

dread getting all dolled up for otherwise exciting affairs; take stock in the

fact that you don’t have to choose between comfort and fashion. When dressing

your pregnant body for a special occasion, there are few fundamental staples

that will keep you from getting overwhelmed. Here are a few tips to get you out

of a fashion rut—and into being a hot mama!


Business Meeting
In the corporate world, much of the way you are viewed is in

how you present yourself. Let your colleagues know that you’re still at the top

of your game. The first step to take is to make a few investments and buy

maternity pants and skirts that fit. Most come with a stretchy band that will provide

you with comfort and support and make room for your ever growing belly. You’ll

feel much more confident inside if you don’t feel like you’re going to burst

out of your pants at any minute. To mix up your look try out different patterns,

but for the corporate environment, always opt for a darker color palette, as this

will help you to appear slimmer and professional. Look for longer shirts that

will nicely cover your front, and take into account your expanding bust; loose

button-ups like the one found at the Gap 

will accommodate your growing frame and, as your breasts become enlarged, you

can wear  tank top underneath and leave

the top button or two accommodatingly unfastened. Finish off your look by adding

a tailored jacket or blazer to give you a polished finish. Layering, when done

right, helps to present a pulled-together ensemble and no one will know if you’re

feeling less the perfect.
Daytime Event
A wrap dress draws in your center giving you a more defined

waist line, while providing a flattering V-neckline that will draw attention upwards

towards your slender neck and glowing face.  Don’t be afraid of color! When in doubt, reach

for a maxi dress. They will give you full-coverage and ease of wearing to keep

you comfortable throughout the night. For swollen feet, reach for a pair of

low-heeled wedge booties. Like these from DSW,

they are a trendy addition to your wardrobe and will add flair to your outfit.

Additionally, ask your doctor about potentially investing in insoles, as your

arches will be carrying more weight than they are use to. One of the best ways

to add pizazz to any outfit is by punching up your use of accessories. Opt for

a cute scarf to tie your look together or stack a bunch of bracelets on your

arm.




Christmas Party
With the upcoming holiday season, finding the perfect dress

for a semi-formal event can be a chore. One thing to remember is to show off

that bump with semi-tight clothes that accentuate your curves. Try a form

fitting dress in a stretchy fabric. Staying away from baggy clothing will help

to prevent you from appearing larger than you are. Pair that look with a chunky

or low heel and add some bling to your look, like this necklace from Modcloth.



Formal Event
Many pregnant women are tasked with having to go to various

formal events. The biggest take away is to steer away for bright patterns and

satin fabrics that will create an unflattering shininess across larger areas.

Opt for a dress with an empire waist, a silhouette that disguises your waist,

allowing the fabric to flow over your curves. The shape of the dress helps to

lengthen your appearance and draws the eyes upward and away from your middle.
What if you’re the bride? There are many options for

maternity wedding dresses, available at sores like David’sBridal. When dressing for your own wedding find a dress shape that flatters

you. Try out a dress with an empire waist. Wear your hair up to show off your

glowing face, and rock some sparkly jewels.
Remember,

no garment is sexier than an air of confidence – take measures to feel

genuinely good about yourself! Whether it is with a set of silky undergarments,

the occasional trip to the spa or pursuing your favorite ego-boosting activity,

don’t forget to take time to celebrate the sexy mama that you are!

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Study: Eating fried chicken daily increases gestational diabetes risk

Women who eat fried food every day are nearly twice as likely to develop diabetes during pregnancy, according to a major study.
Those who regularly enjoy chips, an omelette or fried chicken are at much higher risk of gestational diabetes – a temporary condition that affects up to one in 20 expectant mothers.
Researchers at Harvard University in the US believe that frying releases harmful chemicals into food which affect how the body controls blood sugar.
Gestational diabetes occurs when pregnant women fail to produce enough insulin causing their blood sugar to become abnormally high.
If not detected and treated, it can lead to a premature birth, the baby being very large or at worst dying shortly after labour.
Continue reading 

25 Time Hacks to save you time in your day

As busy people and parents with little time to do all we want to do, finding shortcuts in life are wonderful. We’ve gathered 25 Hacks for Life that may save your a few seconds here and there throughout the day.
If you practice some of these time-saving habits, they add up to your productivity in this otherwise hectic world: 
1. Hands Free for Time and Safety – While you’re driving, a headset leaves your hands free to manage the task of driving safely. After your commute, wearing a headset allows you to be productive with both hands while you’re on hold or conducting routine calls.
2. Super-Charge Your Wake-Up Routine – Slapping the snooze button may be tempting, but you should jump out of bed and do ten brisk push-ups instead. When you stand up, you’ll be alert and ready to face the day.





3. Keep Your Cables Tangle-Free – The same clips that keep large bundles of paper secure can keep your various cables from tangling, which takes forever to undo. Just clamp the clips along the edge of your desk, and feed cables through the holes in the handles.

4. Jump-Start Your Breakfast Prep – Breakfast doesn’t have to be a cup of coffee and an energy bar on your way out the door. Preparing pancake batter and pouring it into an empty ketchup bottle at night allows you to take it out of the refrigerator and squeeze it directly on a hot griddle in the morning. No mixing, no clean-up!

5. Open Blister Packs with Ease – Those plastic blister packs can take forever to open, shredding your fingers in the process. Before you start ripping into one, grab a manual can opener and run it along the edge. It’ll open the blister pack without pain or hassle.

6. Refresh Your Collar Without Ironing – Setting up an ironing board and dealing with the tedium of ironing simply to refresh a shirt collar isn’t necessary. An electric hair straightening styling appliance will do the job just as well, with none of the time-consuming set-up.

7. Keep Kids Safely in Their Beds – If you’re sacrificing valuable sleep because your child keeps rolling out of her big-girl bed, tuck a foam pool noodle into the fitted sheet along the edge of her bed. It creates a raised area that your child isn’t likely to roll over without waking herself up.

8. Turn Your Takeout Container into a Plate – Chinese takeout is a delectable lunch, but eating straight out of the container can be a pain. If you have a relatively dry, sauce-free dish that won’t make a mess on a flat surface, just take the metal handle out of the box and let it collapse outward. Instant disposable plate!

9. Skip the Fabric Softener On Towels – Fabric softener might make your towels more cuddly, but it cuts their absorbency significantly.

10. Stave Off Boil-Overs – Juggling a dinnertime routine when you’re already rushed can lead to a huge mess, but resting a wooden spoon across the top of a pot of boiling water will at least prevent it from boiling over while your attention is elsewhere.

11. Keep Takeout Warm En Route – If your car has seat warmers, flip the switch to the “on” position when you pick up takeout food. The warm seat will help to keep the food from getting cold on your way back.

12. Take Garbage Out at Warp Speed – Suction issues can make it difficult to wrestle a garbage bag out of the pail. Drilling a couple of small holes on each side of the vertical edge along the bottom can eliminate that suction.

13. Quick-Filter Email – A flooded inbox doesn’t have to be overwhelming. To target marketing mail, filter by the word “unsubscribe.”

14. Dust Tiny Spaces in a Flash – Placing the conical cap of a cheap condiment bottle over the hose attachment of a vacuum cleaner creates in impromptu “tiny spaces” vacuum attachment.

15. Ask For Directions Efficiently – If you’re lost in an unfamiliar neighborhood, the fastest and most efficient directions come from the staff of a pizza delivery restaurant.

16. Shop for Groceries Sans List – If you don’t have time to make a comprehensive list, take pictures of the inside of your refrigerator and pantry with your smartphone. You can use these for reference while you’re at the store.

17. Chill Bottled Beverages On the Double – If you’re craving a cold beverage and your entire stock is warm, wrap a bottle in a wet paper towel and leave it in the freezer for 15 minutes.

18. Hull Strawberries in Seconds – Few things are as time-consuming as hulling strawberries, unless you insert a straw through the bottom so that it emerges at the stem, pushing the hull out along the way.

19. Make Canvas Shoes Waterproof – Wet feet are irritating and create the need to change shoes while you’re out. To waterproof your favorite pair of canvas shoes, rub the entire outer surface with beeswax then heat with a hair dryer. When the wax cools, your shoes will be sealed from moisture.

20. Boost Your Phone’s Speaker Power – If you need to boost the sound of your smartphone’s speakers for an impromptu conference call, drop it into a bowl to amplify the sound.

21. Spread Cold Butter on Your Toast – Cold butter may eventually spread over warm toast, but it will probably tear it in the process. Using a cheese grater to shower the surface of your toast with slivers of butter will speed the melting process and preserve the wholeness of your perfectly toasted bread.

22. -Stove Grilled Cheese – Turning your toaster on its side and placing a piece of bread with cheese on it, cheese-side-up will melt the cheese while toasting the bread. Press the two together, and you have a no-stove grilled cheese in a fraction of the time. Watch it carefully though, so it doesn’t burn.

23. Remove Chewing Gu

m from FabricsA wad of gum rubbed into your favorite scarf doesn’t have to spell the scarf’s end. Pop it in the freezer to let the gum harden, and you can usually break it off the fibers easily.

24. Quick-Thaw a Frozen Lock – A frozen lock on your car door doesn’t have to make you late for an appointment. Just squirt an alcohol-based hand sanitizer on the key before you insert it, and the alcohol will melt the ice in a flash.

25. Soap Sliver Time Saver – Don’t waste time fumbling with a tiny sliver of soap, just stick it to the back of a new bar. It’s not wasted and you’re not scrambling to keep in in your hands during a shower.

reprinted with permission from Housekeeping.org

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First Bar for Pregnant women to open in NYC

So there is a new bar in NYC’s East Village set to open called Gestations that touts itself to be the first bar for pregnant women.  

When one hears that one may think: mock tails, fresh juices and healthy blended smoothies and drinks.

After all, a city rep told the New York Post that the owners have not applied for a liquor license as of yet. 
But the image of a pregnant woman popping a bottle of champagne on a billboard sized sign on the front of the venue makes one quickly realize it may not be a healthy bar after all. 

“All you mothers-to-be should come check out our trimester specials and our 9-month happy hour because now you’re drinking for two!” the sign at the bar, slated to open in late October states

Huh? 
Also, the venue’s Facebook and Twitter accounts talk about real liquor!
#gestationsny will have free pregnancy test kits when you buy a pitcher. Check out our profile on#BARTRENDr to see what else we’ll carry,” the Facebook page states. 
Say what?!
Are we being trolled? Is Jimmy Kimmel behind this?
It may just be a  publicity stunt or gimmick!
We’ll see. 
.

30 Early Development iPad Apps for Kids

Being a child is hard. The world is new, and there are a lot of things to learn. And re-learn when we get it wrong. As we grow, sounds turn into words, words gain meaning. Then people start throwing numbers at us. First they’re small numbers, then they grow. They want you to do what with them? Understand their value, their order. Add them, subtract them. Now it’s back to words, which now come in clusters called sentences. Which we have to write stories with.

And that’s just the beginning. There’s a lot to learn in our early years on which our later years rely upon. Fortunately, today’s children have tablet computers like the iPad. In addition to the touch features being incredibly addictive, there are thousands of apps that making learning fun. In no particular order, here are 30 fun and educational iPad apps aimed children in the “early childhood education (ECE)” group. Definitions vary, though it covers kids about 3 to 9 years of age.
Notes to parents and guardians:
  • Several of the app publishers listed here are members of Moms With Apps, who promote best practices for children’s apps.
  • All prices are in U.S. dollars, though some publishers are outside the U.S.
  • Check iTunes profile for a given app to find out the minimum version of iOS your iPad needs.
  • Where age range listed here for an app does not match the iTune profile, note that the range here was provided privately by that app publisher as more accurate than iTunes’ age categories.
  • We suggest that you preview apps in private before allowing your children to use them.
  • Accompany children during their first few uses of an app, to show them how to use it, to answer questions.
  • Some parents like to establish certain parts of the week and day/ evening for when tablet use is permissible.
  • Tablets — especially iPads — can be addictive. Monitor your children and make sure they balance their time with physical activity, and that they are not downloading apps on their own.
  • Some experts believe children under four years of age should not be overly exposed to tablet computers.

30. TinyTap

TinyTap
Are your kids bored of their iPad apps? TinyTap lets them make their own, share them with others, and play games made by thousands of other users, including teachers. Games can be educational, including for learning math, words, grammar and more. Add images, record questions in audio and more. TinyTap can be used by children 6 years old and up to create games, and by kids one or older to play. It’s also a great app for teachers who want to create custom games for their young students. In-app purchase modules for various topics including farm animals, dinos, music and more are available.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 6+ to create, 1+ to play

Price: Free

29. Quizmaker

Quizmaker-1
Quizmaker is an app developed by a Occupational Therapist working with special needs children in a German school, and her son. The app has two modes: quiz taking and quiz making. The former lets kids take quizzes, and the latter lets parents and teachers create custom picture quizzes about the subjects their kids enjoy. Add audio instructions for each question, as well as a set of “positive” and “negative” feedback audio recordings that play depending on who a quiz question is answered. Create quizzes with one or more multiple choice questions and add pictures (3 choices per question) for the answers. Pictures can be from your Dropbox account, the iPad’s gallery, or fresh from the camera. Use your own backgrounds for quizzes, or download a set of free backgrounds right from the app. When you’re done creating a quiz, you can export it (and others) to Quizmaker format and share that via email.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4-5

Price: $2.99

28. Scavenger hunt for kids (I Spy for Kids)

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Scavenger hunts are fun, but they can also be educational, if you plan them that way. The “Scavenger Hunt for Kids (I Spy for Kids)” iPad app lets teachers and parents create scavenger hunts that can include numbers, shapes, and letters of the alphabet, as well as other objects. Add items to a hunt by typing in a sequential list of items to search for, and adding pictures and images as aids. Kids check in with the adult on each item they find. So kids learn while combining physical effort to find items.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 5+

Price: $0.99

27. Pick ‘n Seek

Kido-Game-Studio_Pick-n-Seek-1
Pick’n’Seek is a virtual hide-and-seek game for toddlers. Parents take a picture of their child with the app, adjust the pic, and voila, an animated digital version of appears. The digital child then goes and hides in various screens, and the real child tries to find themselves (At Home, Vehicles, Outdoors, Toys). For shy children that do not want their picture taken, parents can use an animated face as well. The app has four animated animal friends, and nearly 60 card game images. In addition to stimulating the imagination of children, it teaches them about shapes and sizes, movements and speeds, simple vocabulary words and more. There’s also a free lite version if you want to try the app before purchasing.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: under 3 years

Price: $2.99

26. Build A Scare

Deanavryn-Studios_Build-A-Scare
Build A Scare lets kids create unique “monsters” by dragging and dropping various elements to form faces. Spin the wheel to determine the number of appendages your monster will have. There’s a puzzle feature that you can use to create a jigsaw puzzle out of a freshly created monster — or from your iPad’s photo gallery. The app’s not just for fun. Inspired by methods used by a teacher with her students, Build A Scare teaches kids also learn to count, as well develop 2d spatial perception and their imagination.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 3-6 years

Price: $1.29

25. Willie’s Bone

Edulingu_Willies-Bone
Willie’s Bone introduces kids to wiener dog Willie and his pug pal Paul as they go searching for Willie’s lost bone. As Willie and Paul find a farm, kids learn about what’s at a farm and what goes on there, including learning about farm animals, eggs, milk, wool, fruits and more. The interactive story also has companion games to be played separately, which teach children about colors, concentration, memory and other skills.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4+

Price: $1.99

24. Teacher Tilly – Puzzle for toddlers and preschoolers

Juf-Jannie_English-puzzle
The Teacher Tilly puzzles app (one of several Teacher Tilly apps) teaches 2-4 year olds problem solving, sorting, organization and other skills through a variety of puzzles. The included puzzles have voiceover tips from “Teacher Tilly,” which helps kids learn vocabulary. (The iTunes profile says that the app is used by speech therapists to aid children in practicing new words.) Solving puzzles wins virtual balloons, and you can create new puzzles from photos. Coloring pages are available for download and printing as well.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-4 years

Price: $1.99

23. Annie’s Picking Apples 2

Real-Fun-Learning_AnniesPickingApples2-Map
Annie’s Picking Apples lets kids navigate an animated squirrel along different spots on a map. When you stop the squirrel on a puzzle piece, you see a 2d jigsaw puzzle board. Stop on a colored circle and play a variety of math games. One is a counting lesson where you pull different colored apples from trees into the right baskets — teaches counting up to 20. Another is an animated conveyer belt system with different sections, which teaches sequences. There are a total of 27 “worlds,” and adults can set the difficulty level and set the amount of play time. Kids can practice in four languages: English, Spanish, French and German.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 3-7 years old

Price: $2.99

22. Hanna & Henri

Tales+Dice_Hanna+Henri-en-5
Henri gets out of bed, happy that its Saturday. Today, there’s a 7th birthday party for his best friend Hanna’s. You can help Henri get dressed by dragging and dropping items of clothing onto him from his closet. Next, help Henri pick a toy gift for Hanna from the toy story and get it wrapped. Before Henri goes to the party, he has to put a few things away in his bedroom first, by dragging and dropping them into the right box. The Hanna & Henri app combines these sorts of exercises with games, to teach children a variety of things including sorting and counting, as well as simple tasks.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 3-6 years old

Price: $4.99

21. Cavity Dragons Jr

Gooseling_Cavity-Dragons-fire-page
Can’t get your little ones to brush their teeth? Gooseling’s Cavity Dragons Jr. app could help by showing them what happens to teeth without brushing. (Or, depending on the age of your kids, try one of the other Cavity Dragon’s games from Gooseling.) One game in this app shows a set of teeth with food residue. Animated dragons also shoot fire onto the teeth. To win the game, help the fireman with his toothpaste hose clear out the spots of food. If you’re too slow, a cavity forms and the tooth goes gray. Get too many gray teeth and they all fall out. Another game has a fireman riding a toothbrush like a skateboard, whom you have to help clean the teeth. Win virtual stickers as rewards, complete a tooth puzzle, and help decorate the fire station. Gooseling also has a free Fire Station Cavity Dragons iPad app in the Apple App Store.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-5 years old

Price: $2.99

20. Spellyfish Phonics – Short A Words

Pyxwise_Spellyfish-Phones-Short-A-Words-ham
Pyxwise’s “Spellyfish Phonics – Short A Words” is one of several apps in a series, aimed at teaching spelling and phonics and aligned to Common Core. This one focuses on English words that are short and have the letter ‘a’ in them. Children can choose which word puzzle group they’d like to solve. E.g., “_an” words (end with “an” and are three characters long). Spellyfish the jellyfish gives animated commentary, explaining the word to be spelled out, and its context. As each letter is tapped, Spellyfish sounds it out as relevant to the world, effectively teaching phonics. For more advanced tests, there are Spellyfish apps for kids 5-6 and 7-9 — in all covering Kindergarten to Grade 5. Pxywise also has a Simplex Spelling series, and there is a free Simplex Spelling Lite that has reverse phonics.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4-5 years old

Price: $2.99

19. Tiny Robot Maker

Tiny-Twiga_Tiny-Robot-Maker
On the surface, Tiny Twiga Studios’ Tiny Robot Maker app seems like it’s just about robots. However, there’s more to it than that. Kids get to play with robot illustrations, and mix and match parts, while also learning about color, shape and even parts of the human body. Tiny Robot Maker also has a free mini-coloring book with a birthday card that can be downloaded and printed out, as a supplement to the app.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-5 years old

Price: $3.79

18. Little Digits

Cowly-Owl_Little-Digits
The Little Digits app makes counting to 10 fun by taking advantage of the iPad screen’s multi-touch gestures. While in counting mode, tap the screen with one finger to indicate the number 1, then tap with two fingers for number 2, and so on. (Turn off “multi-touch gestures” in the iPad’s settings.) Kids can do addition and subtraction math the same way, simply by tapping the screen with the correct number of fingers. If there are too many or too few fingers, the animation shows the number of fingers and plays a sort of low horn sound. For the correct fingers, there’s a pleasant xylophone sound, and the illustrated numbers dance.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-5 years

Price: $1.99

17. Story Dice

Thinkamingo_Story-Dice
Story Dice by Thinkamingo possibly has one of the simplest interface of all apps in this list. Still, that simplicity leaves room for storytelling that ranges from simple fun to complex. Use the Settings to set the number of dice (2 is default, 10 is max). Now tap the screen or shake the iPad to “roll” the story dice. Play charades, sing a song, say a poem or make a story out of of the images showing on the story dice. There are 170 pictograms in all, sourced from The Noun Project. In addition to helping children who are having difficulty reading but who understand images, this app can be used by adults as well.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4+ years

Price: $1.99

16. Sign Me A Story

GraceSigns_Sign-Me-A-Story
Designed for use with special needs children or those with language/ hearing challenges, the Sign Me A Story app teaches kids to communicate through sign language, and reading through story and video. The first story, “GreenBeanies – One Cool Cat,” is free. Tap an emphasized word in the text of a screen to see a video that teaches how to sign that word. Story one teaches 14 signs, including morning, day, eat, happy, home and others. The second story, “GreenBeanies – Two Magical Hats,” teaches an additional 12 signs and is available through a paid in-app purchase ($1.99). (Story three to come.) The stories are interactive and meant for children at the higher end of the ECE age range, though some younger children may enjoy them as well.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 6-11 years

Price: free

15. Peekaboo HD

Got-Clues_Peekaboo-HD-1
GotClues’ Peekaboo HD teaches children animal names and sounds through different categories. The Farm module is included in the app and includes rooster, cow, duck, horse and more. The app gives animated clues to children on where to tap to reveal the animal whose sound they’re hearing. Additional modules available for purchase are Jungle and Safari (releasing Jun 2014). For languages, you can choose one free option from English, Cantonese, German, Mandarin, and Spanish, then buy more languages later. (Danish is an option in some of the games)
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-5

Price: free

14. Animals Flip and Mix- ABC Cognitive Game

PlaneTree_Animals-Flip+Mix-1
PlaneTree’s “Animals Flip and Mix- ABC Cognitive Game for Kindergarten and Preschool Kids Explorers” app, or Animals Flip and Mix for short, consists of a fun mix-and-match feature where kids can interchange three parts of the illustrated screen to create new creatures. The goal is to match top, middle and bottom parts of the screen by swiping each part left or right until the differently colored syllables match. While trying to match the parts, kids can create creatures that are combinations of fruit and animals — over 2,000 combinations in total – as well make up fake words from the syllable combos. When the three parts match, the apps shows a different interactive puzzle or animated scene for each word. Animals Flip and Mix teaches motor skills and visual perception, matching, spelling and more.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4-6 years

Price: $1.99

13. Montessori Numberland

3ELLEs_Montessori-Numberland
Montessori Numberland is a counting app from 3 ELLEs, an award-winning developer of educational mobile apps started by Montessori teachers in 2010. Through a series of illustrated screens, the app teaches numbers, counting and quantity simultaneously. Children can trace the number in the direction shown by the arrows, as well as tap the same quantity of something displayed on the screen — such as five seagulls, four blocks, eight leaves, etc. Other apps in the 3 ELLEs Montessori series include Montessori Letter Sounds (ages 4-7), which has phonics in English, Spanish, French and Italian; Montessori Geometry (ages 5-10); Montessori First Operations (ages 5-7), which teaches addition and subtraction; Montessori Math: Add & Subtract Large Numbers (ages 6-9); and Montessori Math: Multiplication (ages 6-10).
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 3-5 years

Price: $0.99

12. Community Helpers Play & Learn Free

Paper-Boat-Apps_Community-Helpers
Paper Boat’s “Community Helpers Play & Learn” app teaches children about the people in various community-centric professions. This includes teachers, postal carriers, firefighters, farmers, and more. The free version includes four people (doctor, police officer, mechanic, plumber). There are two modes: Learn and Play. In the Learn mode, kids can tap a person to find out about their profession, and tap on various items that person uses to learn about those. In the Play mode, kids can play drag-and-drop learning games, such as helping the plumber fix some pipes, or helping a police officer with the description of a suspect. Community Helpers was featured by Apple in the “Best New Apps and Games” category.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-6 years

Price: free

11. Lasso Kid

Kidcore-Games_Lasso-Kid-2
Kidcore Game’s Lasso Kid is a free app that teaches hand-eye coordination/ fine motor skills and memorization, as well as logical thinking, sequences, intersection and more, through a series of illustrated screens that require kids to connect animals of the same type together with a virtual lasso. If an animal is not lassoed, it runs away. New activity levels are unlocked as one is completed. The difficulty level of each subsequent exercise increases, so older children can still be challenged. Parents can signup for free access to the Kidcore Web site for tracking their child’s progress in the app, set daily usage limits and more. Or skip that and add player profiles. Players can use one of the pre-loaded illustrated human or animal icons or add a photo.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 3+

Price: free

10. Writing Wizard

LEscapadou_Writing-Wizard-Tracing-Sun
Award-winning educational app publisher L’Escapadou’s Writing Wizard app helps kids learn handwriting of letters of the alphabet through tracing, as well as words and phonics with voiceover audio. Kids learn to write letters of the alphabet through animated clues showing the order of strokes. Sound effects and special graphics make learning more fun, and chidlren collect stars for completing exercises. There are four interactive games included in this app, which was featured in the Apple App Store. Parents and teachers can get involved by creating word lists and customizing the app in terms of text font size, writing instrument style and ink color, drawing difficulty, speed and more. Adults can also track a child’s progress (unlimited users), change letter sounds, indicate upper and lower case letters and more.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-8 years

Price: $2.99

9. Night Zookeeper Teleporting Torch

Night-Zoo-Keeper_Teleporting-Torch
Wonky Star’s award-winning “Night Zookeeper Teleporting Torch” helps kids creatively through an ongoing series of drawing and writing missions. (The app asks adults to register so that kids can receive daily updates for drawing and other creative missions.) The drawing interface has unlimited ‘undo’ capability, making it easier for kids to improve their drawing and painting skills while having fun participating in a world of time-traveling elephants and giraffe spies that defeat Fear Monsters. Don’t be surprised if you hear your child roaring, as that’s the secret to unlocking special stories. Parents and teachers can participate through the online dashboard
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 5-9 years

Price: free

8. Splash Math – Grade 1 to 5

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Splash Math is a multi-award winning app series used by over 4 million children (on iPads, laptops, and desktops) in 8,000 schools, and is aligned to Common Core math standards. The series covers grades 1 through five, and each grade app has a paid and a “lite” free version. The “Splash Math – Grade 1 to 5″ app is free and a good intro into the series. For evaluation, you can skip the sign-up and try it out. Set up the app for your child by entering their name and grade level. Lessons are self-paced, interactive and give rewards in the form of points, games and other prizes. Explanations are given for wrong answers, and new math topic categories are unlocked as points are accumulated. There are too many topoics to list here, though in the free version, you’re only getting a preview. If you want more, from this free app, you can make in-app “lifetime” purchases for each grade, as well as a parent subscription.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4-12 years

Price: free

7. GOZOA – The Key Quest

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The “GOZOA – The Key Quest” app teaches kids by combining gaming paradigms such as a quest with object physics, math questions (counting, addition, subtraction, multiplying, division, times table, digital and analog time, etc.). By winning prizes and points, and finding keys, you complete parts of the quest and unlock parts of the goal — which is to help Gozoa free his friends who have been locked up in a castle. This is just one of several Gozoa apps, with a free “GOZOA – Play & Learn Math Lite” app that uses Angry Birds-style physics and teaches numbers (tracing, counting, etc.) and math.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 6-11 years old

Price: $1.99; has free lite version

6. Kindergarten Math Standards

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Maypop Designs’ Kindergarten Math Standards app is one in a series aimed at different age groups. This one is for Kindergarten students, roughly 4-6 years old. It teaches topics for numbers (recognition, counting, sequencing, addition, subtraction, base 10, etc.), geometry (colors, shape, size, positioning, direction, patterns, outlines, etc.) and measurement. There are slideout panels that explain how a game is played. Complete a game and win points that can be applied to revealing sections of photographs from around the world. Kids can play solo or in groups (default four profiles; add more if necessary). Parents and teachers can configure what topics to include and which to turn off, to customize learning.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4-6 years old

Price: $2.99

5. State Bingo and Road Trip US

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State Bingo and Road Trip US app gamifies the learning of geography topics, with a focus on Common Core standards. In addition to a study map that shows the different states and some important tidbits per state, there’s a State Bingo game in three levels of difficulty, a road trip game between regions, and a timeline serially revealing which states joined the the United States of America — with one state added every time you complete a challenge and “send a state to statehood.” State Bingo asks a question about a state (abbreviation, capital, scrambled letters, lakes, weather, crops, etc.) and a 4×4 grid of states to choose the answer from. Once you get four states in a row answered, you win. In the Road Trip game, you move between adjoining states towards your goal. Get a question right and you advance. Get it wrong and you have to answer another question. See your hits and misses when you’re done, then check the Statehoods feature to see which state joined the union next.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 7+ years old

Price: $2.99

4. My First App Vol. 3 Airport

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Apppmedia’s “My First App Vol. 3 Airport” is an award-winning app that teaches children about various of airports and what goes on there. The app offers a combination of jigsaw puzzles, pattern matching by comparing two similar but different illustrations, visual motor and motor planning skills through a game where players have to drop balls into specific holes on a board by tilting the iPad, and more.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 2-4 years

Price: $1.99

3. Playground 1 – 12 Fun & Educational Games

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Jan Essig’s multi-award-winning “Playground 1 – 12 Fun & Educational Animal Games for Toddlers and Children” app, or Playground 12-in-1 here for short, combines twelve different games that teaches while it entertains children. Playground 12-in-1 consists of 12 different games that teach shape and image matching, patterns, counting, coloring areas with brush and paint bucket, erasing, music and more, while helping improve fine and visual motor skills, logic, and problem solving. Kids can play solo or with a playmate, and parents can set a timer for play durations. Featured by Apple as a Best New App. Other apps in the series include Logic Playground and Preschoolers ABC Playground, both meant for 4-7 year-olds.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 3-6 years

Price: $3.99

2. Love, The App

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The “Love, The App” app deals with more serious lessons for children, such as tolerance, understanding, friendship and of course love. The app is meant for older kids in the ECE range and is based on an illustrated book of the same name from 1964 by Gian Berto Vanni. “Love, The App” incorporates a variety of transitions between pages, ensuring that the reader participate by interacting with various little cut-out windows and sliding elements that give slight animated hints as to what has to be moved, towards the inevitable message of love waiting at the end of the story. The app won the 2014 BolognaRagazzi Digital Award for 2014.
More Information:

Publisher/ developer website

iTunes profile page

Age range: 9-11 years

Price: $4.99

1. My Beastly ABCs

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An amusing way to learn the ABCs, using the names of monsters, mythological creatures and historic figures. It’s an animated story, with goofy monsters, and the rhyming, rhythmic narration is fun even for adults. For an ABC book app that’s 39 pages full of whimsical characters and only $2.99, you can’t go wrong. Makes us wish we had iPads when we were kids.
More Information:

Publisher

iTunes profile page

Age range: 4+ years

Price: $2.99
reposted with permission from Early Childhood Degrees

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4 Halloween Alternative for those who don’t celebrate it

Halloween can be a fun time for children and adults to dress up, stock up on candy and celebrate fall. Some families prefer to forgo trick-or-treating in favor of other activities. Some neighborhoods aren’t safe for trick or treating, and some families prefer to take the focus off the spooky and scary aspect of the holiday in favor of a fall-focused celebration. Below are some ideas for alternative outings to celebrate the holiday.
1. Harvest festivals. Churches often offer harvest festivals or celebrations to shift the focus from scary costumes to the joys of fall. These festivals offer carnival games and other activities. Check out the calendar at some of the larger churches in your area. Most of the time these events offer FREE admission, with a recommended donation of a bag of candy or canned food. Noah’s Ark parties are also popular alternatives to a Halloween celebration for religious families.
2. Pumpkin patches. Pumpkin season is here. Many local farms offer their customers a chance to pick pumpkins and participate in fun activities for just the cost of the picked pumpkin. Pumpkin Patches and More.org  is a great resource for finding a local pumpkin patch.
3. Pumpkin carving party. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to throw a pumpkin-carving party. Ask all of your guests to bring a pumpkin, knife and newspaper (to collect spare pumpkin parts). Then just stock up on cheap drinks and snacks. If you’re inclined, you can also buy a bag of cheap tea-lights (you can get 20 tea-lights for $1 at the Dollar Store). Parents and children can work together to crave pumpkins. Be sure to ask guests to set aside seeds so that you can bake them in the oven for a FREE and festive snack. Allrecipes.com offers a great recipe. Once pumpkins are complete, light them up and enjoy the atmosphere while socializing and snack on fresh seeds. Don’t worry about putting together a playlist; most cable TV stations offer a seasonal music channel you can play while everyone is gathered.


4. Volunteer at a local organization. Check with our local homeless shelter or soup kitchen to see if they need any extra help the night of Halloween. Volunteering is a free way to feel great, and doing something good for another person is a great treat – with no trick.
What are you ideas for other festive alternatives to trick-or-treating?
repulished compliments Living On The Cheap

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This Week’s Celebrity Moms out-and-about PHOTOS

Some of our Bellyitch BumpWatch moms-to-be like Kelly Rowland and Kourtney Kardashian and alums like Fergie, Kate Hudson and others were out and about this week in and out of LAX including…

Kourtney Kardashian was spotted  coming from a party at The Grove in LA with daughter Penelope, beau Scott Disick and son Mason.



Kelly Rowland cusping her bump while running errands. 
Jennifer Hudson was signing autographs with fans at LAX.

Melissa Joan Hart and her kids and nanny were hitting the Cali streets too. 

Kate Hudson looked fab coming off a flight at LAX.

While Fergie was too but arriving. 
Hotness!
Photos: Sellrbrity Rick/Paparazzi Channel

National Yoga Month: Pre- & Post-Natal Yoga Fitness Guide

September is National Yoga Month. Expecting moms too, once cleared by their docs, can use yoga to stay fit and after to peel off the weight.

These tips from yoga instructor and fitness instructor Julie Wilcox  from her latest blog post , reprinted with permission, provide pretty comprehensive guide, including dietary suggestions for the yoga-loving moms-to-be.

Pre-Natal Tips

The first trimester is the most sensitive time for the baby’s development (the brain and nervous system are forming), which means you must always approach your exercise with extra caution.
Buy exercise and yoga clothes that make you feel both comfortable and sexy with your baby bump.
Buy a heart rate monitor so that you can stay within the limit advised by your doctor. General guidelines used to recommend that all pregnant women keep their heart rate below 140 beats per minute however, today there are no specific heart rate limits: The Department Of Health and Human Services recommends 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity for healthy pregnant women-preferably spread throughout the week without any specific heart rate limits.
Choose safe yet effective workout options such as walking, the elliptical machine, slow jogging, moderate biking (not spinning, unless you are super careful about heart rate elevation), stair master, tai chi, hiking, yoga and swimming. 
Other than during the first trimester when it’s okay to do light abdominal crunches, avoid sit-ups in the second and third trimesters. 
Cat/cows and planks are nice core strengtheners you can do safely throughout your pregnancy. 
The key is to stay off your back because the weight of the uterus when reclined can decrease blood flow to the fetus.  

Establish your weekly cardio/strength training and yoga schedule, alternating between the two day-to-day.

An effective program might look like this:

  • Cardio and Strength Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
  • Pre-Natal Yoga Tuesdays and Saturdays. Follow these guidelines in your yoga practice:
  • Always keep your legs far apart enough to make room for your baby bump
  • Avoid deep back bending
  • Avoid deep twists
  • Avoid inversions
  • Incorporate restorative yoga in your yoga practice to reduce stress if you are particularly anxious during your pregnancy

Your muscles are more flexible when pregnant due to hormonal changes (more oxytocin). 

Always exercise and practice yoga with this in mind, being extra careful not to stretch too far. It is easy to pull and tear muscles, tendons and ligaments due to their increased elasticity. 
Avoid excessive external environmental heat as well because it too increases the elasticity of soft tissue.

 Lift light weights to keep your muscles strong and toned.  Heavy weights come with the risk of excessive strain on the body. It’s best to do more repetitions with lighter weights during pregnancy.

Make sure to get enough sleep. If you are having trouble sleeping, learn Yoga Nidra, which is the yoga of sleep.

Meditate: Meditation will help keep you and your baby calm.

Make sure to eat healthy and nutritious foods remembering that general guidelines explain that pregnancy only requires approximately 300 more calories per day. According to the NIH, the right amount of calories to eat for most pregnant women is 18000 during the first trimester, 2200 during the second and 2400 during the third.

DIET

Below are examples of some great meal options

Breakfast:

  • Egg White Omelet (with veggies)
  • Homemade Muesli
  • Steel Cut Oatmeal With Walnuts, Maple Syrup and Cardamom
  • Smoothie (organic all natural fruits with low-fat milk or almond milk) topped With Low-Fat Granola

Lunch:

  • Salads With Protein (stay away from high mercury fish)
  • Vegan Soups (legumes add extra protein) With Whole Grain Toast And Nut Butter

Snacks

  • Carrots with hummus
  • Popcorn
  • Nuts
  • Kind Bars
  • Green Juice

Dinner:

  • Fish And Lean Meats With Veggies
  • Vegetarian Protein Mains With Vegetable Sides
  • Whole Grains

It’s important to get enough Folic Acid in your diet. Ask your doctor if you need supplements.

Post-Natal

Want to get in to incredible post-birth shape? Once your doctor says that you are ready to get back to your ideal body, you can do the following:

1.     Increase the intensity and duration of your cardio workouts (1 hour is a good amount of time for weight loss) as well as the frequency to 5-6 days a week. You can add back more vigorous, various and challenging forms of exercise including spinning, dance classes and HIIT.

2.     Establish a serious abdominal strengthening program, 4 days a week, working all of the different abdominal groups.

3.     Add weight to your strength and toning exercises to maintain and enhance muscle definition.

4.     Get back to regular yoga classes and try flow yoga, which burns more calories than more static forms of yoga (and if you are intermediate to advanced in your practice). Core yoga classes are also great for the post-natal period.

5.     Continue to eat healthy and balanced nutritious foods, again only allowing for about 300 extra calories per day – only if you are breast feeding.

6.     Make sure to use the proper muscles to pick up your baby and make sure to use your muscles evenly (switch sides regularly). This will help avoid low back, neck and shoulder tweaks.

7.     Continue to work on your flexibility. The more flexibly you are, the more you can prevent injury due to new movements your baby will require.

8.     Continue to meditate, practice restorative yoga and yoga nidra, especially if you are sleep deprived. Research shows that meditation can be as effective as sleep in providing rest. Each of these forms of yoga reduces stress and will help you deal with all of your new parenting challenges.

9.     Get weekly bodywork. You deserve regular massages! Bodywork helps reduce stress and also any aches and pains due to your new mommy movements.

Good luck, mamas!

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5 ways to teach sportsmanship to children

There is a little 8-year old boy on my son’s soccer team who throws a tantrum each time the team loses or he doesn’t get a chance to play as long as he wants. Another boy in that same son’s basketball team would throw a fit and cry if he got taken out of the game. 
Teaching a child to be a good sport can be challenging especially for younger children. Take a look at these tips Supernanny.com asked us to share to give you ideas on how to handle it:

  1. Teach him that there is no I in TEAM. This saying is still popular among coaches because it’s so true. Kids, by nature, are self-focused. It’s natural, especially at a young age, for them to think about themselves more than their teammates. They want to be the one to kick the ball in for a goal or hit the home run and win the game. Teach your child that no matter how great he is, he’s part of a team, and everyone on that team is a valuable player. Talk about how each person has something to contribute and should be given the chance to play. These ideas can be especially hard to get across to your child if he’s skilled and is considered a star of the team. When others set him apart because of his talent, it’s easy for him to fall into the trap of feeling like he can get things done all by himself. But he can’t. Even the star needs the support and help of his teammates to shine.
  2. Let him know mistakes are a part of everything in life. No one is perfect, and mistakes are just part of the game in sports. That’s easy to say, but often kids don’t take mistakes with a great attitude. A missed ball or an out of bounds throw can cause anything from a few minutes of pouting to a full-blown meltdown. Take those opportunities to talk with your child about his feelings about the mistake. Remind him that no one on the team, not even the star player, gets it right every time. Help him remember a time when other team members made mistakes and it turned out OK. Helping him realize that his mistake isn’t fatal will help put things in perspective. Off the field or court, give your child lots of opportunities to try new things. Learning how to bounce back from mistakes in everyday life will help him do the same in the game.
  3. Show her how to win. One of the hardest things to teach your child is the lesson of humility. It’s her natural instinct to enthusiastically celebrate her team’s wins, and there’s nothing wrong with that. She and her teammates worked hard and they deserve to celebrate! They should be proud of themselves and enjoy the payoff of all their hard work and dedication. The key is to show kindness and respect to the other team while enjoying the win. That balance is hard to achieve, even for some adults. Remind your child what’s it’s like to be on the losing team. How would she like the winning team to treat her in those situations? What could they do or say that would make the loss easier to handle? By helping her see things from the losing team’s perspective, she’ll be much better prepared to show humility when she wins.
  4. Show him how to lose. The old adage “there’s nothing worse than a sore loser” still rings true today. Teaching your child to show humility when he wins is hard. Teaching him to show grace when he loses is even harder. His natural reaction is more likely to be anger and resentment towards the other team. Use these opportunities to talk about the importance of being proud of his efforts, even when they don’t result in a win. Books and films are filled with examples of good sportsmanship and can be discussion starters for you.
  5. Give her practice in being part of a team outside of sports. There are lots of opportunities in your child’s everyday life for her to learn and practice good team skills. Anytime she has to work with another person to accomplish a task will help her build up the skill set she needs to be a great team player. This can happen in free play with neighborhood kids when they come together to build a backyard fort or develop a new game. It can happen when she’s working with her siblings to get the Saturday chores done. Allow your child to learn from those situations and she’ll reap the rewards both on and off the field.
Good luck parents and caregivers!

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