• You don't have to entertain.  Simply offer hospitality.
• Blow dry your hair right side up and from the roots!
• Even the doctors say to follow your motherly instinct.
• A fancy apron can make even me want to cook (and my husband say it tastes good)
• Nothing...NOTHING...beats a turkey dinner at 9:30 a.m.
• Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is the only book your child needs.
• Exercise in bits and pieces and even if you have to use the weak bands.
• Share your struggles even if it is tough...you might just help someone out.
• Your husband needs and deserves respect evein if he seems like just another kid around.
• With kids...bribes happen.  And I'm not the only one that has a kid who pooped in public.  I will get though this.
• According to my checkbook and savings I shouldn't have missed the March 14th finance topic.
• Teach your kids to aim for Heaven, not Harvard, and they WILL be successful.
• You will not find a more genuine, supportive group of moms and you all are a blessing.
• Our sins are like post it notes.  Jesus removed them from us and stuck them to himself.  Because of that we are forgiven.  Proof that the best things in life really ARE free!
  

ParentCenter.com - Our our children getting enough sleep?

You know your child needs less sleep now than he did when he was a baby, but how much less is still enough? Every child is different — some need more sleep and some less — but here are general guidelines for how many hours of sleep a child needs on average each day.

Age	Nighttime sleep	Daytime sleep	Average total sleep
2 years	10.5 to 12.5 hours	1 to 3 hours (1 nap)	11.5 to 15.5 hours
3 years	10.5 to 12.5 hours	1 to 3 hours (1 nap)	11 to 14 hours
4 years	10 to 12 hours	0 to 2.5 hours (1 or no nap)	10 to 13 hours
5 years	10 to 12 hours	0 to 2.5 hours (1 or no nap)	10 to 12.5 hours
6 years	10 to 11.5 hours	none	10 to 11.5 hours
7 years	9.5 to 11.5 hours	none	9.5 to 11.5 hours
8 years	9.5 to 11.5 hours	none	9.5 to 11.5 hours
* Note: The two sets of numbers don't always add up because children who take longer naps tend to sleep fewer hours at night, and vice versa.

Keep in mind that most kids need a lot of sleep — usually more than parents allow for. Often, says ParentCenter sleep expert Jodi Mindell, author of Sleeping Through the Night, if a child has poor sleep habits or refuses to nap or go to bed before 10 at night, his parents will assume that he just doesn't need much sleep. That's probably not the case — in fact, it's likely that such a child is actually sleep-deprived, hence his hyper, overtired behavior at bedtime. To see whether your child falls into this camp, ask yourself:

• Does my child frequently fall asleep while riding in the car?

• Do I have to wake him almost every morning?

• Does he seem cranky, irritable, or overtired during the day?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, your child may be getting less sleep than his body craves. To change this pattern, you'll need to help him develop good sleep habits, and set an appropriate bedtime and then stick to it. A preschooler or young grade-schooler who's outgrown napping needs a solid 11 to 12 hours of sleep a night, and that amount will gradually decrease as he gets older. Even so, by the time he's a teenager, your child will still need nine to ten hours of shut-eye a night.

To check out an article by Kathleen Doheny, HealthDayNews

 called Study: Children under 5 aren't getting enough sleep

http://parentcenter.babycenter.com/news/?id=529442&scid=pcbulletin:20051212:0:0:0&scid=pcbulletin:20051212:0:0:0#story

How much food should your child eat in a day?

	1-3 Years Old	3-5 Years Old
Milk Group	4 servings/day	2 servings/day
Cheese	1/2 - 1 oz	1 1/2 - 2 oz.
Yogurt	1/2 cup	1 cup
Milk	1/2 cup	1 cup
Vegatable Group	2 servings/day	2 servings/day
Canned vegatables	2-4 Tbsp	1/2 cup
Raw or cooked vegatables	2-4 Tbsp	1/2 cup
Fruit Group	3 servings/day	3 servings/day
Canned fruit	1/4 cup	1/2 cup
Raw fruit	1/4-1/2 medium fruit	1 whole fruit
100% juice	1/4-1/2 cup	3/4 cup
Protein Group	2-3.5oz/day	5 oz/day
Meat/Poultry	1-2 Tbsp	2-3 oz
Eggs	1 egg	1 egg
Peanut Butter	1-2 Tbsp	2 Tbsp
Beans	1/4-1/2 cup	1/2 cup
Soy	1-2 Tbsp	1/2 cup
Cereal/Grains	6+ servings/day	6+ servings/day
Whole grain or enriched white bread	1/4-1/2 slice	1 slice
Cooked spaghetti	2-6 Tbsp	1/2 cup
Oatmeal	2-6 Tbsp	1/2 cup
Tortilla	1/2 tortilla	1 tortilla
High iron cereal	2-6 Tbsp	3/4 cup

Here are some easy tips for eating healthy foods:

• Keep the fridge full of fruits and vegatables
• Serve a variety of foods
• Allow your child to help fix foods when possible
• Watch for signs of tiredness, a tired child rarely eats well,
• Allow enough time for eating--don't rush your child through a meal.
• Keep the TV off-young children are easily distracted
• Child-size silverware encourages self-feeding
• Offer 3 meals and 2 snacks per day
• Eat as a family--sit and relax while you talk and enjoy your food
• Allow kids to pick out a new fruit and vegatable to try when you go to the store.