August 2014 online mag

AUGUST 2014

10 things you can learn from your children

FREE! awesome day trips for the kids

The truth about travelling with kids Your Free online Parenting magazine

Contents Regulars 5 Letter from the Editor 10 Ask a professional - questions from readers 11 Monthly Recipe - Vegetarian Chilli 14 Your Story - Birth in the country 17 Mums and the City - with Alexis Galloway 22 Something Extra - by Carolyn Galbraith 23 Did you know?

26 Kid’s fun 28 Community Noticeboard

Articles 7 12 18 24

Investing in the future 10 things you can learn from your children The truth about travelling with kids My 2014 money challenge

Special Features 8 Awesome day trips with the kids 20 More than just story time by C.L. Peck

WIN One of two family passes to Calmsley Hill City Farm (See page 8 for more details) 4

August 2014

Letter from the Editor Small Steps is going

Dear Reader, Did you know that nearly 4 billion trees are cut down worldwide each year for paper? As Small Steps Parenting Magazine continues to grow we decided that we didn’t want to part of the problem, so as of this month we will be publishing our monthly magazine online only. After a call with Greenpeace Australia I realised that there is so much more we can do to protect what we have and becoming an online magazine will be doing our part. We are also finding that many of our readers are curling up on the lounge with a copy of our online magazine on their tablet computers and we think this is great! We now have readers in the USA, India and Europe which is very exciting for us and we hope that you will appreciate what we are trying to do and continue to support us by subscribing to our online magazine.

We are also proud to announce that we have been nominated for the Ausmumpreneur awards for Emerging Business within Australia. We would love you to help us out by voting for us online at Ausmumpreneur.com which will also put you in the draw to win an awesome family holiday.

Lastly, don’t forget to enter our competitions to win one of two family passes to Calmsley Hill City Farm (page 8) and the new award winner book “A Midnight Song” by CL Peck (page 21) Until next month...

Julie-Anne England info@smallstepsparenting.com www.smallstepsparenting.com www.facebook.com/

Our Contributors Lynne-McKensey Hall is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and midwife. She shares articles with us on topics such as settling, breast-feeding, batter matters and more.

Michael Voss is a Certified Financial Planner. He shares his extensive financial knowledge through answering your questions and contributing informative articles.

Abby Fleming is a qualified nutritionist.

Abby writes for Small Steps regarding issues of child nutrition and healthy eating for families.

Kirsten Mitchell is a Fitness Professional with Fitness Australia. She is passionate about sharing her knowledge and helping others to move well, feel well and look well!

Alexis Galloway is a mother of two and chocolate lover. Alexis joins us by writing our new feature article Mums and the City bringing humour and reality to the life of a mother.

Simone Yuen is author of the children’s books

by Rainbow Balls and shares with us each month her “Do You Know” section.

Ruth Bosanquet is a registered nurse and midwife.

She shares her knowledge by answering your questions and sharing interesting articles.

Carolyn Galbraith is a qualified Special Educator with years of experience all over the world. She writes our monthly column “Something Extra”.

Investing in the Future In our previous article, we covered the costs of raising children. The costs for a two child family ranged anywhere from $500,000 to over one million dollars.

The main cost was the discretionary costs of education which varied depending on the choice of school for your child (private verses public) and the period of education, whether it included tertiary education.

married life, the spouse with the lowest marginal tax rate would be the suitable owner. If both partners are on the top marginal tax rate, then an education bond which is taxed at 30% and is tax paid after 10 years would be the most suitable option. So you really need to decide who will be on the lowest marginal tax rate and for them to own the investment. The investment can be 'ear marked' for the education spending for Readers asked; "'What is the best way to your children, in case there is a separasave for this future expense?". The arti- tion or divorce in later years. cle suggested that you needed to set yourself a budget and commitment to a The type of investment vehicle can eiregular savings plan either on a weekly ther be an education or insurance bond or monthly basis. Obviously your savor a unit trust. Both these structures ofings plan maybe adjusted over time as fer a range of investment options. The your current level of income and expen- option that you chose and are most comfortable with will depend on your time diture varies. frame and your risk profile or the volaSo what type of account should these tility of the earnings which may include savings be contributed to? You want to periods of negative returns. There is a be able to access the capital when the wider range of providers of unit trust fees are required to be paid on a annual investments than insurance bonds. Unit basis. You also want to achieve the best trusts also have a wider range of investearning rate possible on your capital ment options which may also be a conwithout taking excessive risk and have it sideration for your choice of vehicle for tax at the lowest rate possible. The difyour savings. ference of 4% to the earnings on your capital over a 10 year period can be sub- So there is a lot to consider. It's not a stantial. You also want to pay tax on the case of one size fits all. If you are not sure which is the best way to go, earnings at the lowest rate possible. seek professional advice. It may save The type of account that best suits your you thousands in the long run. savings for this purpose depends on who owns the account. As a couple, the If you have any questions on the above owner of the account should be the one please contact me at with the lowest marginal tax rate. That may be a non-working spouse. The earn- michael.voss@arrowfa.com.au. ings would then be taxed at their marginal rate which would be zero. Alterna- Best wishes Michael Voss CFP tively, if both partners are working and Disclaimer: This is general advice only intend to continue working during their 7

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Awesome day trips with the kids For those days when you just want to do something different...

Calmsley Hill City Farm 31 Darling Street Abbotsbury NSW 2176 (02) 9823 3222 If you are looking for a relaxed day out with the family, try Calmsley Hill City Farm. Set on 400 acres this farm is a oasis in the city. A day here will leave you feeling like you had a holiday in the country. With animals to see and shows to enjoy, there is plenty to keep you busy all day long. In particular our children enjoyed the working dog show which even managed to hold the attention of my 17month old daughter. Another highlight seemed to be the animal nursery where the children could go in with the baby animals to touch and feed them.

There are BBQ facilities and picnic tables available plus a café, tractor rides to enjoy and more.

Plus they run camping nights from September to Easter to really get the most out of the farm experience.

Your favourite part of the day?

“Definitely the tractor ride and feeding the goats” Charlotte, aged 11

“All the goats” Caitlin, aged 3

“It was the tractor ride” Chloe, aged 6 and Jackson 2.5 years

WIN!!

We have two family passes to Calmsley Hill City Farm to giveaway. To win simply “like” us on Facebook and share your drawing of your favourite animal. Then send an email with your name and age to info@smallstepsparenting.com.

Competition closes 30th August 2014. Winners will be notified by email.

Leura Cascades Chelmsford Drive, Leura NSW Getting out into nature is a great way to entertain the kids while getting some fresh air and some exercise.

Leura cascades is one of those breathtakingly beautiful places still left in this world. The cascade walk is a circuit track of 1 km making it a manageable walk of around 30 minutes to an hour, however it may be challenging for young children especially if there has been rain to make it more slippery.

Don’t forget to bring your camera and keep your eyes open for the local birdlife you are bound to see on this quiet walk.

There are picnic facilities available as well as public toilets.

Nurragingy Reserve

Off Knox Road, Doonside NSW If you are looking for a place to take the kids to wear out some of their energy, look no further than the Nurragingy reserve. A beautiful bushland area, this reserve allows you to walk, ride your bikes, have a family picnic and make use of the children’s play equipment.

Take a Frisbee (or your nerf) and have a family game. There are also bushwalking tracks for those of you who enjoy a nice quiet hike.

The trees provide lots of shade and there are BBQ facilities and toilets available for public use.

In summer time they have a water park that will entertain the kids for hours with fountains, sprayers and more.

Hawkesbury and Nepean Rivers For those of you who love the water, why not hire some canoes and go paddling down one of our local rivers. Both Nepean and Hawkesbury Rivers have boat points where you can enter the water and there are several local canoe rental places that get you off to a great start.

The Penrith Regatta Centre has hire facilities for as little as $15 for a one person canoe and allows you to use the boats on or off site.

Just remember that this is a great outdoor activity for the adults as well as kids but extra care needs to be taken with children under 10 around any water activity. Some centres may have limits for boat hire with very little ones.

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Ask a Professional...

QUESTION: The days with my 18 month old daughter seem very long when I am on my own. What are some things I can do with her to pass the time?

Toddlers often seem difficult to entertain as they are too old for baby toys but not old enough to do many of the things we do with preschoolers. When you are able to give them some one on one time you will actually find that there are plenty of things you can do to keep your toddler occupied. Here are a few suggestions of some fun yet simple activities to keep your toddler happy:  Give her a small bucket with a handle and go on a nature walk - this only needs to be around the yard or down the street. Encourage her to collect leaves, rocks and flowers and put them in her bucket.  Give her a paintbrush and a small cup of water and let her paint the sidewalk.  Give her a few small bowls and some objects to put in and out of them—just be sure the items are not too small to be swallowed.  Stick together a few toilet rolls and make a ball out of aluminium foil. Show her how to roll the ball down the inside of the toilet rolls.

For other ideas please check out our blog on the website.

This answer has been supplied by Julie-Anne England who is trained in childcare.

Learn more about Julie-Anne on our "About Us" page on our website.

Combos Slides Obstacle Castles Slushie Machines Phone: (02) 4571 1240 or 0402 100 681 Email: tomcatjim1@bigpond.com Birthdays/Corporate Events/Preschools/Fetes/Christmas/New Years

Monthly Recipe

Vegetarian Chilli Ingredients Serves 6  2 tablespoon olive oil  1 onion, finely chopped  1 tsp mixed herbs  2-3 garlic cloves, crushed  420g can mixed beans, drained and rinsed  420g can chickpeas  425g tin corn kernels  425g can diced tomatoes  1 tablespoon tomato paste  1 tablespoon sweet chilli sauce

Method Place 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, add the onion and cook until softened. Add the mixed herbs and cook for a further minute Reduce heat to low and add the garlic, beans, chickpeas, corn, tomatoes and tomato paste Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove lid and cook for a further until the mixture has thickened (approx. 5 mins) Serve vegetarian chilli with warm tortillas or steamed rice and sprinkled with grated cheese (optional)

This recipe comes from Healthy Kids Association. For more healthy recipes check out their website www.healthy-kids.com.au 11

10 things you can learn from your children We spend so much time teaching them how to live and act‌. Ever stop to think that maybe we can also learn from them?

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The wonder of the outdoors - children seem to find magic everywhere they go 3. but even more so when they are outdoors. As adults we get content with staying inside and avoiding the elements. Having children can remind us that nature is a great place to be. Watch them as they explore through the grass, collect rocks, dig in the dirt and run 4. around the open spaces. Try joining them and see what they see. Encourage their exploration and be enthusiastic.

Unconditional love - there is nothing quite like the love of a child. It is so innocent and pure. All they want is your time and attention and you will have 12

their complete and utter devotion.

Forgiveness - a child tends to forgive so much quicker than many adults. While we can hold a grudge even for years, a child will move on and allow the relationship to continue. Taking on this trait can do a lot for us and the other people in our lives.

Joy - why feel any emotion when you can be happy? Kids love to see the best in things and tend to view the world through rose coloured glasses. Rather than picking at the reasons why your day will be bad try to focus on the good things that have already happened and move on from there.

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Excitement - remember those magical 10. Honesty - we can all relate stories when hours of Christmas morning? Nothing one of our kids said something straight is as exciting to a child as waking up up and caused us some embarrassment . knowing there are presents to open. As While it’s probably not a great idea to we grow up we stop being as excited just start speaking your mind (as temptabout life and its experiences and get ing as that may be) we can all learn a caught up in the task of being an adult. lot from a child when it comes to honAllow yourself to have time to enjoy esty. Try being honest about your yourself and get excited about things thoughts and feelings with those close again. to you, the more you do it the easier it The fun of water - if you are wondering gets. what can keep your child entertained for hours on end, then look no further McGraths Hill Children’s Centre Inc than water! Pouring, scooping and  Open 6.30am-6.30pm splashing will plaster your child’s face  From birth to 6 years with delight. In order for your to re Nutritious meals daily claim this sense of fun, why not join  Community based your children in the pool or put on the Not for profit centre sprinkler.  Preschool transition The simple things in life are best programs notice how a baby will spend hours 69 Andrew Thompson Dr, McGraths Hill playing with a box, a sheet of paper or a Ph: 4587 7141 or email: mhcc@westnet.com.au pile of rocks. When did you allow yourself to be content with the simple? Sitting outside in the fresh air? Watching the clouds? Blowing bubbles with the kids? It’s easy to get caught up in this era of technology and forget the basics.

How great a hotdog is - it was probably something you ate a lot as a child but when was the last time? Why do we often think that hot dogs, chicken nuggets and fairy bread is for kids? Maybe allow yourself to embrace the inner child and eat like one (at least once).

Being carefree - I know that children don’t have responsibility like we do as adults but I think that is why they are able to be carefree and not worry about life as a whole. Remembering how freeing this can be can reduce your stress significantly. Why not plan for a day where you can put aside your worries and just relax… set up your bills to auto -pay, switch off the technology and just allow yourself some time to unwind.

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Your Story Nellie’s Story - Birth in the country My husband and I had both grown up in the city. We married young and worked hard in our respective jobs, saving for a house deposit. Typical scenario so far.

We had no plans to start a family at this stage and life went on fairly predictably until one day we were enjoying a coffee on the back porch of our rented home when John said, “How would you feel about a move to the country?” Stunned, I replied, “What country?” Laughing, John said, “This country. Just think, we could buy land and build our dream home for a fraction of the price that it would cost us in the city.”

To say that I felt overwhelmed by the suggestion was an understatement. There were our jobs to consider, our families lived relatively close, so much to think about. However, I have always been an adventurous person and it was not long before I was anticipating the move with excitement and looking forward to the complete change that country living would bring.

We did quite a bit of research beforehand and finally decided on a location which was beautiful but quite isolated. Fortunately, we were able to access the internet and so our work situations were able to continue although our overall income had decreased as a result. Nevertheless, we were thoroughly enjoying our new found peace and quiet and our weekends were spent making our temporary dwelling comfortable and liveable.

We made friends with some people in the small township which was 100 kilometres from our home and life was moving along at an easy pace.

One morning, I woke feeling unwell. This was quite unusual as I was basically a very healthy person. As the day continued, I began to feel better, and dismissed the incident from my mind until the following morning when the same thing occurred. The thought that I may have been pregnant didn’t even cross my mind. We had been using contraception from the beginning of our relationship and it was usual for me to have irregular periods.

The nausea continued, becoming more severe until John finally insisted that I see a doctor.

To appease him, I visited the local GP, well as local as possible as it was a 200 kilometre round trip to achieve this. A pregnancy test was undoubtedly positive and the doctor questioned me at length about my cycle as she felt that I was further advanced in my pregnancy than she had originally estimated. I felt a mixture of emotions, disbelief, panic, concern--this was not part of our plan. We had wanted children in the future, but now the future had become the present with startling reality.

There were basic ultrasound facilities in the town and the GP referred me mainly because of the discrepancy in my size, I was measuring bigger than she expected for the period of gestation.

John accompanied me and I watched the sonographer’s face as she moved the gel covered probe across my lower abdomen.

Finally, I could stand it no longer. The silence was deafening and her expression was unreadable. She answered my anxious question with, “No, nothing is wrong, but you have 2 gestational sacs” 14

Even then it didn’t make sense until she said : “Congratulations, you are expecting twins.”

We will skip over my response as it was not very gracious or printable, suffice it to say, it was quite a while before I was able to process, accept and finally think of my babies with love and anticipation.

Thankfully, John was very supportive and it took him far less time to accept our coming family with excitement.

Time waits for no man, or woman for that matter, and the weeks passed. I had booked in to the local hospital where I was reassured that the visiting obstetrician was very capable of handling multiple births and, as there was no reason to suspect that the babies would be underweight, the risk of my giving birth in a small birthing centre was minimal.

I had reached 37 weeks and was feeling huge, uncomfortable and was walking like a cross between a giant penguin and

someone who had had a bilateral knee replacement— My longsuffering GP who had provided most of my antenatal care, interspersed with periodic checkups from the visiting specialist, suggested that maybe it was time to talk about birth plans. She was understandably concerned about the fact that we lived a distance from the hospital, and so it was decided that I would be booked for induction on the day that the obstetrician made his weekly visit.

Finally, the end was in sight. I lay in bed that night, trying to imagine how our life would change. I was excited but also very nervous. I had wanted an adventure, but this was not exactly what I had had in mind! I was almost drifting off to sleep when suddenly, my abdomen tightened painfully. I had been experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions for weeks, but this

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I was hysterical, not knowing what had become of John, but the midwife explained that it was very important for me and my babies, one of whom was not yet born, to remain calm.

I breathed slowly, trying to gain control. The baby was breathing and her little body and face was pink.

The contractions had completely stopped and I was was the strongest one I had ever felt. It was grateful for that- I didn’t think that I could followed by another and another- there handle anything more right now. seemed to be no let up. There was no need Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, to wake John, he was fully aware of what I heard the deafening but heavenly sound was going on. of a helicopter. A doctor and a paramedic “Stay there honey” he said. “I’ll throw your arrived. The doctor disappeared almost bag in the car and come straight back for immediately to give first aid to my husband you” I was too busy concentrating on the who had fallen down the front stairs in the very frequent contractions to pay much hurry to get me to hospital and hit his head attention. John disappeared but when he on a rock. He had been unconscious for a didn’t return, I started to panic. The conshort time and unable to get up or respond. tractions were getting more and more inThe paramedic checked my unborn baby’s tense and I could feel a pressure sensation heart rate and assured me that they were in my pelvic area with each one. I doing everything possible for my husband. screamed out for John but there was no A second aircraft was dispatched and my answer. By now I was trembling with fear baby, myself and husband were all transand pain. Where was my husband? ported to the nearest major health facility.

Suddenly, at the height of a powerful con- I was placed on a drip to stimulate further traction, I felt a rush of warm fluid. My contractions and my baby boy was born in waters had broken and then an enormous good condition 3 hours after his sister. pushing, pressure. I automatically reached Their weights were 3110gm (girl whom we down and felt a little head, followed called Lilly) and 3150 (boy called Harry) quickly by the body. I held in my hands a Their dad did well, a head ultrasound retiny pink baby, thankfully screaming. I lay vealed no residual damage and after a week her on my bed and covered her with some or so of recuperation, he took his turn in blankets. The pain had eased a little and I the nappy, bathing feeding regime. grabbed the phone and with trembling fin- This is definitely a story that will be regers called the hospital. Despite their obvi- peated to friends, family and others. I am ous shock and concern, they spoke calmly so grateful for the assistance of the medical and reassuringly and told me what to do team. This was indeed an adventure but while an air ambulance was dispatched next time I’ll settle for a trip to Fiji!! urgently.

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Bumper Stickers

I know you so well yet we haven’t met…

The experience of being in a traffic jam has shifted quite a bit over the past 10 years, and it’s not just because we need to be in possibly more places than we did previously with more sports and more activities for the children after school. But what I am talking about is not how long you are spending in traffic, I am talking about the person sitting in the car right in front of you (possibly not long after reading this column.)

By just looking at the majority of cars in front of you for (less than 40 seconds) you will already be able to answer some of these questions below without even asking a single question:

Are they a greenie?

How do we find out all of this information about someone from just a glance of their car? It’s certainly not just one thing, it’s a few. These include the use of different stickers, stick families showing who is in their family, their gender, if their children are babies, teenagers or toddlers, their number plate showing their name or nickname and in some cases birth year!

Spooked out completely yet?

It’s a pretty amazing thing, that in today’s society where in some cases we feel it isn’t safe for our children to walk to school, yet we still feel safe enough to showcase to the general public intimate How old are they? things about our lives on the back of our What is their name or nickname? cars. It’s either a great thing that we feel How many children does the person have? safe enough or we just didn’t realise how What is their age range? much information people can really get Are the boys or girls? from just looking at your car!

How many pets do they have?

It’s safe to say times have changed in the What pets are they? traffic world, especially when you can (in What state do they live in/or come from some cases) have a fair idea of their reacDoes the mum like shopping? tion if you bump into them eek!

Is the father more into sport or BBQ’s?

What football team do they support?

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The truth about travelling with kids flight.

We boarded the plane and used the overhead bins to store our stuff. We had a short flight of four hours ahead of us followed by a stopover then another 11 hour flight.

Flight number one went well. My baby was calm and happy. Then came the second flight…

After a long layover and one flight under our belt my baby was becoming increasingly fussy. As we boarded the second flight they settled everyone in and switched off all the lights for take-off. I breathed a sigh of relief.

This is exactly what my baby needed. I fed her some milk as we took off and she settled quickly and peacefully went to sleep.

Just half an hour later the cabin crew switched all of the lights on to serve dinner.

It was already well after midnight in our time and the bright lights were like an alarm to my baby. She started to scream, very loudly and uncontrollably. I did everything I could to pacify her - rocking, dummy, patting, walking the aisles…. If only I had her My baby was almost six months old and we bunny! were travelling overseas to visit my husAn hour later she was still screaming! I band’s family. I was actually looking forcouldn’t make eye contact with anyone. The ward to the trip, not the flight, but just getstewardess kept asking if she could take the ting out of our normal every day routine. baby for me but I knew that wouldn’t help.

My daughter was not a settled baby but I “She just wants the lights off.” I told them. figured that since parents travelled with their They told me they couldn’t switch the lights kids everyday, I would also manage. off while people were eating their meals. I Our first hiccup was at the airport (yes, we told them that they would just have to eat hadn’t even left the country). With so many while she screamed. things in my hands I hadn’t realised that I Eventually the cabin crew removed everyhad dropped my daughter’s toy bunny. It one’s trays and settled the cabin down for was her attachment item and it was one of the rest of the long flight. With that they the only ways to settle her. I begged security switched off the light - and like another to let me back through the gates to look for it switch my daughter closed her eyes and but they had no intention of letting me - not stopped crying. Relief was not a strong even when I pleaded. I told them she would enough word to cover what I was feeling. I scream without it. They didn’t care but then was exhausted myself and just longed for a why would they? They wouldn’t be on the soft flat bed to curl up in.

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The rest of the trip was like a rollercoaster. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing my husband’s family and showing off our new addition but my sleep quota was dramatically lower than it had been at home. My daughter was clingy and only wanted me and I found the only way she would sleep was directly against my chest for half hour intervals.

Needless to say I was exhausted!

Our six week trip ended with a six day stop at an island paradise. It was here that I was able to resume some sense of normalcy.

I grabbed sleep whenever I could and at times slept so deeply that even my baby was unable to wake me.

Finally the trip was over and we returned home.

Looking back I have both good and bad memories from our trip - and some missing memories from the lack of sleep, but I feel that I was able to learn from the experience and apply that knowledge to other trips we have done since.

Now as my children continue to grow our

trips are getting easier and more enjoyable. I look to the future fondly and picture what trips we will take and what memories we will make.

Some people have an easy job of travelling with kids, for me that wasn’t the case but I refuse to let it taint my future adventures.

I have realised that a holiday with children is very different than a holiday with just your partner but I thank God for these little people in my life and I embrace the next season that encompasses travelling as a family.

Written by Julie-Anne England.

If you have a story you would like to share we would love to hear it. If your story is published you will receive a $20 Coles gift card.

Join us on our Facebook page for notifications of other articles, stories and more and interact directly with us.

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More than just story time...part 3 I would like to share my passion regarding teaching. As parents, you have the opportunity to contribute greatly to your child's education. As a teacher, I was all about making learning fun! When children are enjoying themselves, you would be amazed at how much information they absorb. Their brains become like little sponges! The more involved and excited about a book you are, the more excited and involved your child is going to be.

Here are some of my ideas of how you can bring the book to life: Don't be afraid to have fun.

Add inflections in your voice and change your tone. Act out different voices for the various characters in the story. For example, you can create a scary voice for the evil monster, or a silly voice for a quirky character. Both my children and my students would just giggle whenever I implemented this technique, and if for some reason I didn't incorporate the voices into my reading they invariably always would beg for me to read with the funny voices. Children love it when we aren't afraid to be goofy.

Another approach you can use to bring the book to life is to act out your favorite scenes in the book. I will use examples from my book, “A Midnight Song,� but 20

you can use this technique with any book.

If you live near a beach or you know you will be vacationing at the beach, you could go down to the shore and search for your own pirate booty (seashells and sea glass) like Sam and his mother. You can also make a hut out of appliance boxes like the huts in Kiki and Baruti's village. Use your imagination on how you want to decorate the box to look like a hut. If you have a fire

pit outside or a fireplace indoors, you can pretend that you are at the Whale Festival and you can dress up in colorful clothes and create your own ritual dance. The ideas are endless. There is a good chance that your child will start coming up with their own ideas. Yay! You definitely want to go with their ideas. They are showing you how they are relating to the story and what they are getting out of it.

Remember, the more you make reading enjoyable and fun, the more your child is going to want to read. And the more they read, the better reader they will become.

Pay attention to your child's interest. If they are not interested in a particular activity or book, do not be afraid to revisit it at another time. Their moods and interests are always developing and growing. I strongly recommend that you make learning fun! Try some of my learning activi-

ties from the Small Steps Parenting Magazine blog www.smallstepsparenting.com Just one final reminder: our children are unique and wonderful individuals. As individuals they possess their own strengths and weaknesses. Please do not compare your child's accomplishments with those of other children, even their siblings. Our abilities and timing in the learning process all vary, just like our talents. As parents we need to celebrate the uniqueness that is in our children and in ourselves as well. We all have gifts that contribute to making the world we live in a better place.

Written by C.L. Peck, author of “A midnight song”. Win a copy of this gorgeous book by sending your answers to the questions below to our email address. Winners will be drawn next month.

Win a signed copy of “A Midnight Song” Cynthia is the author of the award winning book “A Midnight Song”. We have one autographed copy to give away. To enter Cynthia would like to know your thoughts for her next book where the main character, Sam will be travelling to Australia. Please answer the following questions and email them to info@smallstepsparenting.com to go in the draw to win. Winner will be notified by email. Entries close 15th August 2014.

What do you think Sam should experience when he is in Australia?

What do you think he should eat that represents the Australian culture?

What area do you think he should visit?

The Dream-Child We all have dreams of the children who will be born - ideas of who they will be, what they'll enjoy, what they'll achieve.

For most of us, those dreams fade gently and slowly away as the child grows and exerts his or her personality, so that we almost forget the dreams we had before they were born. For others, those dreams are challenged immediately the child is born, or shortly after.

have to face, what they might have to miss out on. It was also the dream of what a newborn would be like that disappeared that day. I couldn't cradle my babies in my arms, due to the brace; they couldn't wear the little onesies I'd bought for them, and people stared at them.

It's ok to grieve the loss of the dream, whether the child has something mild or something more significant. It's important When your child is born with something to recognise that you're mourning the loss extra, it means more than the difficulties of your imagined child, and to give yourthat might be faced in the short term. It self time to go through each aspect which also means looking into the future, a future you're mourning. She doesn't look the way that can't be controlled or managed. It's you expect; he doesn't love being cuddled worrying about pain that might exist the way you'd hoped; she won't be followsomeday, or loss, or fear. ing in your career footsteps. It's ok to mourn and move on, then grieve again Both my children were diagnosed with hip later. dysplasia at six weeks old. While this is a mild, manageable condition in most chilAt the same time, though, the very same dren, for some it does mean operations and time the perfect imagined child is lost, pain later on. Most people couldn't under- something else is gained - and that's the stand why I was so upset at the diagnosis - true child. Slowly, as your children grow, after all, it's just a hip brace, isn't it? But you discover who they are. She's funny, for me, it was the fear of the pain my chil- he's loving, she's adventurous, he's a bookdren might have to face if things didn't go worm. Each tantrum and each achieveso well, it was the fear of what they might ment provides a new window into person22

ality, into who this little person actually is.

The balance of loss is in the person you love.

If you have a child with something extra yourself, perhaps this will resonate with you, perhaps it won't. Every family and If you've got a friend whose child has every child is different. But we're all the something extra, let them grieve for the lost same in one way, looking to know our chilperfect child. And look for the person, the dren better each day, through their actions unique individual, that the child will beand their lives, discovering who they are, come, and honour and love that person. who they will become.

Did you know‌?

Painting can tell a story. It helps develop children to be effective communicators.

Spend time painting with your child and ask her what she is painting. her answers may surprise you!

When your child paints both sides of his/her brain are engaged, helping the right and left brains make connections.

When both sides of the brain work together it releases potential.

Sometimes, the painting does not have to represent anything at all, simply let your child paint freely.

Painting enhances brain development. Research shows that art stimulates the brain centres that control emotion, cognition and memory.

Peg butcher paper to the fence and let your child finger-paint or with a paintbrush and leave the activity there for a few days for your child to revisit.

Written by Simone Yuen, children’s book author, www.rainbowballs.com.au 23

01 My 2

4

Money Challenge

This month in my 2014 money challenge I am focusing on the children’s bedrooms in our temporary home. If you have been following along with my in my money challenge you will have learned about my savings goal, the fact that we just bought our very first property - an acre of land and that we are living in a mobile home while we save to build our dream home.

Last month I showed you how I renovated our bathroom for under $1500! My next priority for our modest little home was the children’s bedrooms. My budget for both rooms was $400.

When we moved in, the kids rooms were filthy. There were marks on the walls, holes in the plasterboard and stains all over the carpet. My aim was to transform them into clean, appealing rooms for the children to sleep in.

First step was cleaning. I wiped down all of the walls and the ceiling to remove any dirt, dust or spider-webs. I cleaned the windows and scrubbed the window frames.

I used plaster to fill all the holes in the walls and sanded them until they were smooth. The large unfinished hole in the wall in the nursery was replaced by a handyman.

Next I began painting. I started with some high gloss cream coloured paint for the window sills. I found this in the garage during the move so it didn’t cost me a cent.

The walls were my next priority. I gave both rooms a white undercoat. My 3 year old’s room was then painted another coat

AFTER

BEFORE

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of white to make it fresh and inviting ($30 from Bunnings). In my baby’s room I used a soft blue which I also found during the move. I wanted it to represent sky and I am planning on (eventually) painting a rainbow across the wall.

For a feature wall in the white room I used painters tape to mask lines from the ceiling to the floor. I used a gorgeous bright pink to

paint ($30) over the whole wall and then removed the painters tape. It left a fantastic bold feature wall that really added to the room.

With the rooms now feeling fresh we ripped up the carpet and had brand new carpet laid by a professional (costing us about $100).

We managed to get carpet for both rooms for approx $200 from POCO in Blacktown.

Now the rooms had a brand new feel. I felt happy that the kids could play in a nice clean environment and was pleased that once again I managed to stay under budget.

I am using things that I already have to accessorise the rooms. I found some butterfly wall stickers in my craft room for the nursery and I made artworks myself for each of the children and simply put them in a $10 frame.

All in all, a pretty successful job.

BEFORE AFTER

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Kids Fun! Magic messages Use the following code to decode the mystery messages below.

Then try using the code to come up with your own secret messages.

a

b

c

d

e

f

g

h

i

j

k

l

m

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n

o

p

q

r

s

t

u

v

w

x

y

z

n o p q r s t u v w x y z

I love playing Outside on a sunny day

playing with My friends makes Me happy 26

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Comments?

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27

Community Do you have a free playgroup, event or program for families?

List them here on our community noticeboard for FREE! Email us.

Meet & Greet Tuesday 1.00pm – 2.30pm Informal group for mums & bubs birth – 18 months Bookings phone 4577 9804

PRE-SCHOOL STORYTIME every Tuesday 11am-12noon Richmond Branch every Thursday 11am-12noon (except during school holidays) Themed stories, rhymes & craft for 3 - 5 years Siblings welcome FREE - All welcome Central Library Windsor Deerubbin Centre, 300 George Street, Windsor (02) 4560 4460

Playgroups During school term South Windsor Tuesday, 0-5 year olds, 9:30 –11am Hobartville Tuesday, 0-5 Year olds, 9:15 - 11am Windsor South Thursdays, 0-5 year olds 9:15-10:45am Bookings phone 4577 9804

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RHYME TIME Every Monday 10-11am (except school holidays) Rhymes, songs and craft for 18 months to 3 years. Siblings welcome.

FREE - no need to book.

Central Library Windsor Deerubbin Centre, 300 George Street, Windsor (02) 4560 4460

Twins and More The playgroup is for families/carers of twins or parents expecting multiple births.

Hawkesbury Twins and More is a free Playgroup providing an informal welcoming setting to socialize, interact & share experiences with others who have Twins and More.

Bring a rug for babies to lie on & anything else you may need!

For more information please call Thursdays—Fortnightly 9.30am—11.00am South Windsor Family Centre Greenhills Way, South Windsor 4577 9804

Noticeboard

Hawkesbury Humbugs Playgroup Join a relaxed group with babies and preschoolers and meet for a coffee, morning tea and a play.

First two visits free, just bring a drink and a piece of fruit.

All welcome.

For Aboriginal Children and their Parents/Carers.

Monday Morning 9.30am – 11.30 am (During School term) Windsor South Public School (Entry from Cox St gate near the corner of Campbell St) Morning tea provided.

For enquiries please call Merana Aboriginal Association for the Hawkesbury Inc. 4588 5144

Playtime@HVBC Are you looking for a safe, fun, secure environment where your child 0-5 years can meet together with other children? Do you need some

Thursdays Glossodia Community Centre 9.30am-11.30am For more info call Alana 0403354364

adult talk time? Come to Playtime at HVBC! Where: Hawkesbury Valley Baptist Church, 14/26 Terrace Rd North Richmond When: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 9.30-11.30am during school term Contact: Ph 4571 4963, txt or call Deanna 0438 668 259 or check out our website www.hvbc.org.au

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How to prevent bullying Easy makeup for Working mums

Women in business The danger of Labelling our kids

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