I am a huge hand washing advocate.

Personally, I hate being sick - and I hate having sick kids! When I hear that a classmate or playmate of my kids has a stomach bug, my own stomach tightens and turns and my palms start to sweat just a little. I instinctively have the urge to wash my kids’ hands right that second!

I am not the greatest disciplinarian, but one rule that I set when Jackson was a baby was that everyone (adults too!) washes their hands every time they come in the house.

Regular hand washing is so ingrained in Jackson that he rarely questions it.

When he arrives home with a play date, he instructs the other child, “Let’s go wash our hands!” as he drops his coat and shakes off his Crocs in the middle of the living room. (Remember I said I am not the greatest disciplinarian? But hey - at least his hands are clean!)

Occasionally, as I holler at Jackson to come back and pick up his shoes, the play date will raise his eyebrow at me and question why he has to wash his hands. Before I can answer, Jackson will bellow above the sound of the running water that it is a rule in our house. The other child then shrugs his shoulders and runs off to wash up.

I breathe a little bit easier - and sometimes pick up the Crocs and the coat.

So, when Dial Complete asked us to help promote their Campaign for Clean Hands, I thought, “Ohhhh - I can get even more hands clean! Sure - let’s help wash those germy, grimy hands out there!”

But, since I imagine most of you are already vigilant about hand washing, I also wanted to let you know that you can have a GREAT chance at winning ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS and a trip to Washington D.C. in their Clean Hands video contest. There aren’t that many entries yet and the contest doesn’t run for too much longer - so seriously - you want to enter this contest! You might win!

The site also features an online “DC Germ Blaster” video game and a variety of fun, educational hand washing materials parents can print and share with their children, including a home hand washing chart, coloring and activity sheets, bookmarks and a memory game, as well as a sweepstakes visitors can enter to win a year’s supply of Dial Complete Antibacterial Foaming Hand Wash.

Visit www.campaignforcleanhands.com to enter the contests and partake in all the hand washing fun!

If your kids complain or forget about hand washing, or rush through without properly washing, (Jackson sometimes does that!) then getting them to interact with the site - and even make a video “teaching” about hand washing - might really help to get your kids excited about washing their hands! (I find that when Jackson is the “teacher,” it empowers and motivates him.)

To get you in the mood to make your own video, Jackson and I made a video too.

(Since we are Canadians, we can’t enter, but we still had fun making the video. Jackson cracks me up. I tried to get him to redo his video and leave the last part out, but nope. He insisted that was what he wanted to say. Good grief! Also, our video is longer than videos submitted to the contest should be. Please make sure you read the site for all the Campaign for Clean Hands contest guidelines.

And of course - we have some extra giveaway fun for this post too. We have three cartons of Dial Complete Antibacterial Foaming Hand Wash to giveaway. If you want to be one of the three winners, just leave a comment at this post.

We will draw the winners on October 25th. This contest is open to both US and Canadian shipping addresses.

I don’t want you to miss this one…

These kids costumes are so adorable and perfect for Halloween AND year-round pretend play.

We’re giving away a fantastic collection of different costumes in various sizes for your children to dress up this Halloween and then continue the fun afterward.

Unlike most Halloween costumes, this dress up gear is extremely high quality and inspires hours of creative play throughout the year.

Click here to see the costumes and tell us which you’d like to win.

What I love the most about these costumes is how they inspire kids to pretend to be real-life super heroes — Doctors, Firefighters, Air Force Pilots and more…

Childhood is a time to dream and to believe you can become anyone you want. I think playing ‘doctor’ must be one of the most universal games kids play. Julia incessantly pretends to be tending to her sick or wounded dolls.

These outfits will inspire your child to play and inspire you to grab your camera and record each moment.

Hello Tacklers!

It is Lisa from Confessions of an Apron Queen here today. I am your new head tackler here at 5 Minutes for Mom and I am excited for my first day on the job…

There is a reason I wear an apron. It’s because I’m a messy cook. And it tends to get even messier when our two girls join me in the kitchen. We recently tackled preparing some of our favorite Italian dishes for a fun little blog series I’ve been working on about Italy.

Not to mention, cooking is always messier when I’m working on a blog post. Typically, I struggle to keep my messes out of the camera’s viewfinder. I’m not a clean-up-as-you-go type of cook either. I just shove everything onto the countertops beside me or behind me. By the time we are done in the kitchen, it generally looks like some sort of explosion. Food everywhere, dirty dishes everywhere!

Time to call in the clean-up crew! Oh wait, we are the clean-up crew. So, I guess I’ll put the little one on dishwashing duty. My girls are such wonderful helpers around the house. They truly enjoy their chores.

In fact, they both like sweeping the floor so much that they fight over the broom. OK, I just wish that were true. But, a Mom can dream can’t she?

We threw out the trash. We put food back away in the cabinets and refrigerator. We washed the dishes. We wiped down the countertops. We swept the floors. And the Italian pork chops are simmering away on the stove.

So, it’s time for the girls to put in a movie now. Because it’s Date Night for me and the hubby. Except, we aren’t going out. We’re just going to sit by our pool. No kids allowed. Time to catch up on conversation while sipping some wine and a nibbling from a fruit and cheese platter. It really doesn’t get any better than that.

A Bit of Tackle News:

• Tackle It Tuesday is all about community and supporting one another. So while I am posting my personal tackles here some weeks, I will also be rotating with guest tacklers.
  
  If you would like to be a Featured Tackler here at 5 Minutes for Mom please email us at…

• We had a HUGE response for our upcoming CLR Tackle. Product will be shipped out this week to the 200+ participants that signed up via email. The CLR Tackle will happen October 21st. If you are participating, make sure you come and link up on October 21st for your chance to win one of the three prize packs.

What did you tackle this week? Link up and let us know!

Join Us For Tackle It Tuesday We’re making housework blog-able! Each week on Tuesday, we are posting before and after pictures of a project or trouble area that we tackled this week. Find out more about Tackle It Tuesday here. The project can be little or big – whatever you want. Basically, Tackle It Tuesday is about giving ourselves incentive, deadlines and satisfaction in getting our household tasks done. (It doesn’t even have to be housework… just whatever is on your To Do list.)

If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below.

Happy Tackling ladies…

Last year, when we heard that another Veggie Tales film was going to be released on the big screen, we were excited.

We don’t often go to the movie theater as a whole family because it’s hard to find a movie that appeals to a ten-year-old girl and a four-year-old boy (not to mention their parents!). Cost is another factor of course, but we went ahead and shelled out the money for the whole family to see The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything in the theater.

The humor of the Veggie Tales is the kind of thing that appeals to each of us in different ways (My son was laughing about the hopping cheese curls for weeks!).

Well, now that it’s being released on DVD (October 14), the whole family can enjoy it all over again.

We much prefer to watch a DVD at home for so many reasons:

• Home viewing is a fraction of the cost. You can rent the DVD for far less than a single ticket, and can buy the DVD for the cost of one adult and one child ticket.
• We can pause for potty breaks and not miss any of the action.
• We can make our own snacks, or have a pizza party (again — much lower cost!)
• We get to stay holed up in our own house, instead of getting out.
• We can watch it whenever we want — not subject to theater schedules and having to schedule around naptime, bedtime and mealtime.

I have even come to prefer watching DVDs with my husband instead of venturing out to the theater, for many of the same reasons. What about you? Do you stock up on DVDs for the kids and even your own viewing?

Do you have some pirate-loving kids in your home? Leave a comment here, and we’ll post the winners on November 1. One grand prize winner will receive the prize pack pictured above, and four others will win the DVD The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything.

Until then, check out Veggiepirates.com for more information about the movie, including downloads and games.

The TWIN cousins are turning one,

So come on girls, let’s have some fun!

With their birthdays just two weeks apart, this past weekend Susan and I were thrilled to celebrate our babies’ - the “twin” cousins - birthdays together with one adorable Princess Party.

(Susan and I call our babies “twin” cousins because they are so close together in age. We love being twins and we hope our babies love growing up as “twins.”)

Since we have neither time nor talent for cake making, Susan and I cheated by buying our daughters “home made cakes” from a wonderful work at home grandmother, whom a friend referred to us.

Her cakes were the perfect indulgence for our little princesses.

But matching cakes and matching dresses are about all our little Twin Princesses have in common…

It was so funny to watch their very different personalities in action at their first birthday party.

Olivia and Sophia are the exact opposites of each other, but they sure take after their older siblings.

Olivia is outgoing, full of energy, intense and has a short attention span. She grabs on to life, takes a huge bite, grins as she quickly chews it down and then jumps up and runs to find the next exciting piece of life.

Tiny Sophia is shy, serious, emotional and has a long attention span. Sophia carefully examines her world, tentatively chooses a piece, enjoys her bite and stays all day to fully enjoy the experience.

Olivia tore around her party, convinced she was a “big kid.” She laughed and screamed with delight as she chased after cousins, tried every toy, and sped down the slide. She loved every sweet second of her first birthday party.

Sophia preferred to stay away from the crowds, choosing one toy - a ride on tractor - and stuck to that toy for the entire play time.

She happily pushed it around, but if another child or an obstacle got in her way, she dissolved into tears until someone rescued her and her tractor.

When it was cake time, the girls were true to their personalities as we presented each of them with their own “smash cake.”

Olivia dug in before I could even snap a picture. Sophia examined the cake before carefully reaching out a finger to touch the pink and white laced creation.

Laughing, licking and going back for more, Olivia quickly experienced her cake while interacting with everyone watching.

But after a few minutes, Olivia was satisfied and ready to get back to playing at her party.

Sophia, after deciding the cake felt good smooshing between her fingers, dug in up to her wrists.

She would have stayed and played with it for hours if we didn’t finally intervene to clean up. (But not more than a tiny taste actually went in her mouth the entire time.)

Discovering who our children are, is the sweetness in the bittersweet job of helping our children grow up. While we don’t want the days to disappear so quickly, learning more about them with each new stage is so much fun.

We are so grateful for our precious “twin” princesses - Thank you God for our girls!!!

Do you want to hear about even more great books and contests? Sign up for the 5 Minutes for Books newsletter.

It’s that time again. In October of each year the color is pink and we think about our girls a lot more than we usually do.

Because I have a pre-pubescent tween daughter in my house, I’ve actually been thinking a lot more about them in general. This summer we shopped for bras. They are much less bra-like than I remember my training bras being (Does anyone else remember those triangles covered with the lace mesh type material with the pink rosette in the middle?). They are really just like a smaller more bra-like cami. She needed these for an extra layer of coverage and for the social necessity of changing for gym in her new intermediate school, but it’s becoming increasingly obvious that before too long, we might be moving towards cups.

I say that to say that when I got a copy of Taking Care of Your Girls: A Guide to Breast Health for Girls, Teens, and In-Betweens, I was interested. I wanted to learn about what I should tell her, what she might want to know, and honestly, I thought that I might learn some stuff about breast health, too, which is more on my mind as I near forty.

It didn’t really teach me much that I need to know at my age. It’s not that kind of book. This book is formatted in the way that I believe is best for non-fiction books for or about tweens and teens: It is full of quotes and questions from the target group, and it is written by a mother-daughter team — breast-health doctor Marisa C. Weiss and her college daughter Isabel Friedman. It’s the perfect combination. Weiss gives the facts straight and Weiss fills them in with a real girl’s reaction to the facts by sharing her own stories, those of her younger cousin, or those of the many girls who were interviewed for this book.

Topics covered include

• breast development
• breast size and shape (diagrams included!)
• noticing and checking from breast changes
• stretch marks, breakouts, and rashes
• self-image and teasing
• bras
• dress to express
• and even padded bras and surgery to change your size

In reading this book, you won’t learn about the best diet to ward off breast cancer (although a general diet and lifestyle facts that reduce the risk), or when exactly you should get that baseline mammogram, but if you have a daughter from age eight or nine on up through young adult, you will find out what she is wondering about her breasts. After reading it yourself, you can pass it on to her to read, or share with her in bits and chunks.

We have 5 copies of Taking Care of Your Girls, to give away to U.S. or Canadian residents. Leave a comment here to enter. I’ll announce the winners in next week’s column.

The winners of last week’s book The Vegan Lunch Box are #45 Mia J. and #55 Diane G.

And since the Harry Potter 10th anniversary giveaway is now over, I can announce those winners as well:

The grand prize winner of a complete set of the Harry Potter books in hardcover along with the 10th anniversary edition of the Sorcerer’s Stone is #11 Darla Kidder.

And the four winners of the 10th anniversary edition of the Sorcerer’s Stone are
#160 Cythia Mccoy
#199 Mama Zen
#243 Sylvia
#32 Debbie

Do you have a little horse lover in your home? My daughter, Audrey, loves horses and dreams of owning her own horse someday. And although it isn’t the same thing as her own real live horse to ride and love, she is very fond of her toy horse from Paradise Horses.

She owns Corduroy, a fully posable horse. He came with a halter, comb and carrot. She loves that his legs can bend and move and that his mouth opens so that she can feed him.

Corduroy is one of four different posable horses sold by Paradise Horses, and each horse comes with its own story. Corduroy is a chestnut horse with a soft muzzle. He is affectionate and enjoys being pet and groomed.

I think that it is wonderful that they make each horse unique so that children can choose which horse they would like to own, based on its coloring and personality, much like they would if they were purchasing a real live horse.


Your little equestrian will also love Paradise Horses’ line of riders, clothing and accessories for their loved horse.
Realistic jumps can be used for practices and exercise. The Two-Stall barn makes a great home for the horse and also provides room for clothing, tack and accessories. The tack and clothing offered allows for the horse to be dressed and prepared no matter the occasion. Each piece is also highly-detailed and realistic, making it a smaller version of the real thing.

Paradise Horses encourages serious horseplay with realistic horses and accessories that are handmade and hand painted with love. Every horse is an original and once in your child’s arms, can be registered with the Paradise Horse Club, receiving a Certificate of Authenticity.

If you have a horse lover in your home and would like a chance to win one free product of your choice from Paradise Horses, please leave a comment below. You can choose from any of the horses or accessories. This giveaway is only open to US shipping addresses.

We will draw a winner on October 25th.

Paradise Horses also has a promo code for our wonderful readers, just in time for holiday shopping. If you would like to receive 20% off your order, please enter in promo code paradise5.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

There’s a new meme in town called Three Word Thursdays. To participate, just post a photo that includes 3 WORDS in the photo which describe the photo. Stop by for more information and examples.

Glimpse is a new review blog that focuses specifically on Canadian products and services. This is their opening week and they’re celebrating by hosting 2 great giveaways. Stop by for a chance to win either a Handful of VERY cute clips or a Mother Ease Diaper and Diaper Cover. Good luck!

CONTESTS & SWEEPSTAKES

It’s time for dessert and the whole family’s excited, because tonight you’re having ice cream sundaes! Have an “Ice Cream Sundae Night” with your family and let everyone come up with the fixings for the World’s Best Ice Cream Sundae – and then submit your ice cream sundae ideas to http://www.Serving-Ice-Cream.com for your chance to win Ben and Jerry’s ice cream!

Estee Lauder has teamed up with Brickfish to create the Share a Survivor Story, Inspire the World contest for Breast Cancer Awareness Month where individuals are encouraged to share inspirational stories, photos and videos about how breast cancer has affected them or someone they love. You could win some amazing prizes like a $500 Aveda gift card, two Splendid tank tops, a signed Elizabeth Hurley High Gloss Lip Color Collection, and a copy of Marisa Acocella Marchetto’s book, Cancer Vixen: A True Story, or an assortment of nine BCA pink products.

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Deko and Posh would like to hear about yours or someone in your life’s Breast Cancer stories. A random winner will be selected to win a Pink Gift Package from dekoposh, Inc which includes a Pink OMG Tween Tee, a Pink BFF onesie, a Breast Cancer Awareness “Build a Purse,” a Pink BLNT Teen Tee, and a pink Breast Cancer Awareness Pin. Deadline to enter is Oct 31st.

Organic Baby Resource is holding the Organic Baby Contest where you could win some great prizes from various cool sponsors. To enter, just submit a product review you’ve done on any organic-type baby product you’ve used. Deadline is October 31st.

The Dial Complete brand has launched an informative Web site — www.campaignforcleanhands.com — that features a video contest for kids; an online “DC Germ Blaster” video game; and a variety of fun, educational hand washing materials parents can print and share with their children, including a home hand washing chart, coloring and activity sheets, bookmarks and a memory game.  The site also features a sweepstakes visitors can enter to win a year’s supply of Dial Complete foaming hand wash. Visit www.campaignforcleanhands.com to partake in all the hand washing fun!

BLOG GIVEAWAYS

For Everyone

• Muse Reviews - $50 gift certificate to Tiny Prints (Oct 7th/US)
• Goodies for Mom - 20 - 4X6 custom photo cards with envelopes (Oct 8th/US)
• Leslie’s Life - $25 Gift Certificate to J!NX (Oct 10th)
• Family Review Network - Texas Instruments TI-Nspire Graphing Calcuator (Oct 11th/US)
• Just a mom’s take on things… - $50 to Posh Doggie Necklace (Oct 11th/US)
• Mommy’s Idea - $60 Design Credit from RS Designs (Oct 12th/Any)
• MommyBlog Reviews - Pair of jeans at The Gap or GapKids (Oct 13th)
• Red Sox Mommy - Political Greeting Cards from Hallmark (Oct 13th/US)
• Momma In Flip Flops2 - Black Butterfly Stationary - eight notecards (Oct 13th/US, Can)
• A Frog In My Soup - Mega Blog Design from SNS Blog Design (Oct 20th)

Just for Women

• Rainy Day in May - Pink Giveaway (Oct 5th)
• Just a mom’s take on things… - T-shirt of choice from LTDChix (Oct 8th/US)
• A Frog In My Soup - Collaborative digi-scrap kit, Autumn Harvest, from Faith Sisters (Oct 13th/Any)
• Sassy Frazz - Ju-Ju-Be BeLight Bag (Oct 15th/Cont US)
• Notes of Jubilee - Dove Gift Tote: Dove cucumber mint shampoo and conditioner, Dove cucumber mint deodorant and a cute brown tote (Oct 17th)
• Our 2 Peas in a Pod - A pair of pink earrings (Oct 31st)
• Mommy’s Idea - black & pink quilted tote (Oct 31st/US, Can)
  

Just for Kids

• An Island Life - $100 to Halloween Party Store (Oct 5th)
• An Island Review - iCarly Season 1 DVD (Oct 5th/Any)
• Making Travel With Kids Fun - $150 Gift Certificate to LittleJetSet.com (Oct 6th/US)
• Livin’ With Me - Tamagotchi Giveaway (Oct 6th/US)
• An Island Review - Tutu of your choice (Oct 8th/US)
• A Wrestling Addicted Mommy’s Blog - K’NEX Sesame Street Building Set (Oct 8th/US)
• Simple - Winners choice of Bugaboo Shoes (Oct 8th)
  
• A Wrestling Addicted Mommy’s Blog - Package of Tattoos For Tots (Oct 9th/Any)
• Muse Reviews - Sesame Street Playground CD/DVD (Oct 9th/US)
• An Island Life - Secret Keeper Girl (Oct 11th/Any)
• Mommy Reviewed - 2 Huru Humis and a T-shirt (Oct 12th/US)
• Red Sox Mommy - Our First Journey DVD from On Butterfly Wings (Oct 13th/US)
• Sassy Frazz - K’nex Sesame Street Building Set (Oct 15th/Cont US)
• Sassy Frazz - I Spy Private Eye Game (Oct 15th/Cont US)
• Sassy Frazz - Pocket Snails Potty Adventure DVD (Oct 15th/Cont US)
• Relishing the Dirt - Yoplait Gift Pack: cooler, free kids yogurt, Brain Quest game (Oct 16th)
• A Wrestling Addicted Mommy’s Blog - A Package of Stick with Me Wristbands from Stuck on You (Oct 16th/US)
• A Bookworm(Mom)’s Diary - Tools for School pack labels by Stuck on You (Oct 23rd/US)
• A Wrestling Addicted Mommy’s Blog - (5) Whirl-O Lightnings, (5) Whirl-O Trick Deck Sets (Oct 31st/US)

Baby Essentials

• Momma In Flip Flops2 - Cuddling Baby Mei Tai of your Choice (Oct 6th/US, Can)
• An Island Review - Infant Massage DVD from BabyBabyOhBaby (Oct 7th/Any)

Home & Garden

• All Because Two People Fell in LOVE - BusyBodyBook Organizer (Oct 5th/US)
• Jackie’s Thoughts - Hoohobbers Rocking Chair (Oct 5th)
• Close to Home - Year Supply of Scott Tissue and Towels (Oct 7th/US)
• An Island Review - Cocoa Puffs Combos Cereal (Oct 9th/Any)
• An Island Life - DYMO LetraTag Personal Label Maker (Oct 10th/Any)
• Contest Bytes - Sylvania DOT-it Checkers LED Lights (Oct 15th/US, Can)

Books for Grown-Ups

• Grasping for Objectivity in my Subjective Life - Books by Christian Author/Speaker Jarrod Jones (Oct 7th/US, Can)
• A Wrestling Addicted Mommy’s Blog - The Takeout Cookbook (Oct 9th/Any)
• Heart Reflections - The Mom Complex by Darlene Schacht (Oct 10th)
• An Island Review - ADD/ADHD Drug Free (Oct 11th/Any)
• Chefdruck Musings - Then She Found Me DVD (Oct 13th)

COOL WEBSITES

The American Society of Hematology (ASH) has recently launched a new campaign to help educate the public on the link between healthy blood and total wellness. ASH’s campaign keeps in step with Acting Surgeon General Steven K. Galson, MD, M.P.H. recent call-to-action on Deep-Vein Thrombosis (DVT, a type of clot that forms most commonly in a major vein of the leg) and Pulmonary Embolism (PE, when a detached clot travels through the heart to the lungs where it becomes wedged, preventing adequate blood flow), which pushed to increase awareness of these potentially fatal medical conditions and recommended actions for individuals, families, healthcare systems and others to reduce the number of cases of each nationwide.

Ever thought about growing a moustache? *Well, not you but maybe someone you know?* That’s exactly what the folks at Movember are trying to get men to do. Movember is a moustache growing charity event held during November each year that raises funds and awareness for men’s health. It started in Australia (”mo” is Aussie slang for moustache) and happens all around the world. In the U.S., Movember is being utilized to get people talking about prostate cancer, a very serious health issue for men. Stop by for more info.

From now till December 28th, when customers buy any Baskin-Robbins frozen beverage, a second beverage is half-price. Additionally, stores will offer two pre-packed quarts of any Baskin-Robbins ice cream flavor for $9 and three quarts for only $12. Along with these great deals, Baskin-Robbins is also featuring special ice cream flavors this fall, including Apple Pie á La Mode and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Also, Baskin-Robbins has the 2008 Election Flavors in stores now. Stop by to find out what they are.

A few months ago, I mentioned a contest going on called Someday Stories Dreams. Well, the finalists have been selected and now it’s your turn to vote for your favorite entry where the winner will receive $100,000 and a charity will win $250,000. Vote today and help make someone’s dream come true.

INTERESTING POSTS

• psycho supermom - Family Movie Night

If you would like to have a post on your blog featured in 5 Minutes Around The Blogosphere, please send us an email with the actual link to your post at features5minutesformom at gmail dot com and we’ll see if it can be arranged.

Kailani can be found at An Island Life, An Island Review, Family Review Network & Island Baby Boutique.

I have emailed each winner, but remember it is your responsibility to get your information to me within a week (ideally by replying to the email). If you know you are a winner, but didn’t get an email, send in your shipping info along with the prize you won. The spam filters might be wrecking havoc on the notices.

Now, with all the unpleasant business out of the way, I am pleased to announce this week’s (many) winners:

The 10 winners of the Wow Wow Wubbzy prize pack are:

• #12 Shana
• #210 The Angel Forever
• #94 Natalie
• #22 Sara
• #328 Timothy Sternberg
• #194 Julie Donahue
• #65 Angel
• #32 Karen
• #182 Evelyn
• #233 Elizabeth

The winner of the Lexmark Wireless Printer (still lovin’ mine!) is # 603 Joan Rice.

The 10 Yoplait Kids Prize Pack winners are

• #7 Bubbalicious
• #167 Shannon B.
• #277 Linda
• #93 Susan M. Heim
• #115 Deanne S.
• #178 Michele Anne Jaquays
• #55 Kelly @ Love Well
• #163 Susan C.
• #22 Organizing Mommy
• #235 Yvonne North

Be sure to take advantage of your $1.50 off coupon for a six-pack of Yoplait Kids Yogurt even if you didn’t win. **This coupon offer for $1.50 off Yoplait Kids yogurt is not valid in Canada and some states, including Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota and Tennessee.

#210 Hayley G. will receive the $50 Shutterfly gift card.

*** Monthly Feature Column ***

Positively Speaking
Building Assets in your Kids

by Kelly Curtis, M.S. from Pass the Torch

As of this month, I’ve been writing this column for two years.

It’s interesting to mark milestones like this one, particularly in conjunction with a look at what’s gone on in my life in the past 24 months: a homeschool experiment, move, new job, new school, and the writing and release of my first book.

What’s that expression about the rolling stone? I’m pretty sure it gains speed.

For the second anniversary of Positively Speaking, I will recap the Developmental Asset ground we’ve covered. We’ve addressed 17 assets within seven categories during the past two years, and also taken a look at the broader interpretation of the asset approach, including finding strengths in your children, and taking care of yourself as a parent.

Search Institute has identified 40 Developmental Assets, which research shows are characteristics of healthy, caring, resilient kids. The more assets youth have, the more likely they’ll resist risky behaviors in the future.

Each month, the best part of the experience is reading the thoughts and questions readers leave in comments. I appreciate your participation and hope you’ve enjoyed the journey as much as I have.

Support
We’ve learned about the ways parents can become positively involved in their child’s education, what families can do to communicate better, what’s asset-rich about lemonade stands, and how the “other” adults in a child’s life have a major impact.

Empowerment
This category is the topic of my book, so you’ve read several articles about how to empower kids, including the many definitions of service, giving back to the community, raising charitable children, and how to create a safe environment.

Boundaries and Expectations
We’ve discussed the Love and Logic approach to discipline, through a two-part series on family boundaries. We also addressed the ways neighbors can keep high expectations, and how parents can set a good example on the soccer sidelines.

Constructive use of time
I wrote about how we can use play to bring out the creative spirit in youngsters.

Commitment to Learning
We addressed the vital importance of reading to our children, and the ways we can encourage learning and critical thinking through conversation.

Positive Values
My very first Positively Speaking column addressed responsibility, and was republished in the regional publication, Family First, in September. Last month I wrote about poverty and the ways we can help our children to understand and be sensitive to the social and economic issues faced by fellow citizens.

Positive Identity
We focused on body image and self esteem, and the ways we can encourage our children to join us in setting goals and resolutions.

Which columns have you enjoyed the most? Which assets would you like to learn more about? I’ve only missed one category – Social Competencies. So next month I’ll be writing about Planning and Decision-Making. Hope to see you here!

Thanks for joining in to build assets in your kids! I look forward to seeing you again next month for Positively Speaking.

Kelly Curtis is a Wisconsin school counselor and author of Empowering Youth: How to Encourage Young Leaders to Do Great Things. To read more about Kelly, please visit her Weblog, Pass the Torch or follow her on Twitter.

We’re having a HUGE costume giveaway… but it is going to have a quick entry deadline — we’ll be announcing the winners on Wednesday, October 8th — so read on and link up quickly.

This Halloween let your child’s costume inspire instead of scare.

Playing dress up is a wonderful year round game for kids, but on Halloween the game is elevated to a most exciting status.

It’s no wonder kids go crazy for Halloween. All rules go out the door.

Grown ups get involved. Children pick out new costumes. Instead of bath-time, book-time and bed-time, children are escorted into the dark of night to collect candy from strangers!!!

As a child I loved Halloween as much as the next kid, but as I grew older the holiday grew less appealing. The celebration’s evil beginnings and the ever-growing dangers from unsupervised teenagers frustrated me.

Now as a mother of a 3 year old I try to forget about any evil and just focus on the fun.

One way we as parents can help to keep Halloween as good, clean fun is to encourage our children to dress up in inspiring, unique costumes.

Instead of dracula, a witch or yet another spiderman, this year let your child turn into an Astronaut, a Fire Fighter, a Race Car Driver or another REAL-LIFE Super Hero!!!

And instead of their Halloween costumes being worn once and tossed in the back of the closet, your children can continue to dress up and play pretend all year round.

These dress-up costumes are also perfect Christmas presents!

We’ve been offering these fantastic costumes in our Pedal Cars and Retro Collectibles store for the last three years and have had awesome feedback. Customers love the quality and realistic look. And during the last year we have only had a handful of returned items because customers ordered the wrong size. So, when we were reviewing our inventory, we decided we’d GIVE these costumes to you our loyal readers. They are all in perfect, brand new condition, but just the packages have been opened once.

How To Win

Here’s how this special giveaway will work. We’ll show below the costumes and sizes we have available as prizes. (ALL costumes and sizes are ALSO available for purchase at our store.)

Write a post on your blog telling us which costume and size you’d like to win. (You can list a few of your top picks.) Also please remember to link to this post AND the costume you’d like to win. If you’re not a blogger, please leave your preference in the comments.

Which Costume Would You Like To Win?

	Junior Astronaut Space Suit Sizes Available For Giveaway: Size 6-8 in White Size 8-10 in White Size 12-14 in White
	Junior Fire Fighter Suit with Helmet Sizes Available For Giveaway: Size 2-3 in Black
	Junior Cowgirl Dress Up Outfit Size Available For Giveaway: Size 8-10
	Jr Air Force Pilot Suit & Helmet Size Available For Giveaway: Size 12-14
	Jr Champion Racing Suit & Cap Size Available For Giveaway: Size 8-10