10 Tips for Managing and Organizing your Family!

1) Prepare a weekly healthy menu ahead of time. Once a week go grocery shopping for the ingredients you'll need to be able to stick to your menu. Make sure to include healthy low sugar breakfast items to start your kids off with brain fuel. Remember to include healthy after school snacks and items for extra curricular events during the week. On a budget? Check the local sale adds before heading out to shop. On the day of your extra after school activities stock a small ice chest full of healthy snacks or a prepared meal to have on hand to avoid the temptation of the fast food urge. Get the kids involved in learning about making healthy choices and planning out the weeks menu and getting them involved in cooking the meals.

(One of my fondest memories as a little girl was when my mom and grandma were in the kitchen cooking dinner. I was around three so to keep me occupied, I had my own cook station. A tray with a bowl and stirring utensils and extra food scraps, egg shells, vegetable scraps and such to mix away and cook my imaginary meal.) Always wash children's hands before and after handling food.


2) When your young children arrive home from school. Go through their backpacks looking for notes from the teacher, homework, or flyers for other schools events. Update your calendar right away with any new events and talk about your child's day. Make sure to ask your older children how their day was and what go over their assignments they are working on.

IT ENDS HERE….By Ian Hawkins

Guest Post by Ian Hawkins.

A very good friend of mine was recently telling me a story about his family and how he and his wife had changed their outlook on their life and that of their family. They were heading in a direction they didn’t like, one they were all too familiar with. And so they made a crucial decision – IT ENDS HERE. He actually used those three words and they have become like a mantra to live their life by. This is so powerful and so inspiring.

Certain beliefs and behaviors that had been stuck in their family for generations were repeating and they decided enough was enough and it was time for change. This generation would be where it ends and they would set a new example for their children and their children’s children to follow. And things are changing. I can see it in him and I can see it in the stories he tells me about his wife and children.

Alphabet of Child-Raising Ideas

(Click to enlarge)

While digging through some old files from when Carol's mom worked in daycare many years ago we came across this alphabet chart.

It was originally published in Ann Landers.
We fell in love this this soup of alphabet parenting tips.

We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

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5 POWERFUL REASONS YOU ARE ALREADY AN EXTRAORDINARY DAD.

Guest Post By Ian Hawkins.

I had an interesting conversation with my daughter a while back. I was apologising for speaking to her with angry eyes and she said something so simple to me, and yet so powerful. “Dad, I don’t see any anger in your eyes, I only see kindness. It’s just your eyebrows that look a bit angry sometimes.” Brilliant! So while I was frustrated at myself for not bringing kind and loving body language, she was so beautifully reminding me that just because I had made a mistake, didn’t mean that I had angry eyes, it didn’t mean I was an angry person. What she saw was her “kind” Dad pulling an angry face.

Life is precious and can be gone in an instant. Do not waste a minute of it.

Guest post by Erin Taylor, author of 

Connection and Kindness: The Key to Changing the World Through Parenting.

I WAS HIT BY A DRUNK DRIVER LAST NIGHT
Yes, you read that right. I was hit by a drunk driver last night. Thank God I walked away without a scratch, but needless to say, it was pretty scary. As you know well by now, I tend to write through my experiences in order to process them, so this will likely be a long but chocked-full post. Please read on if you will….

I was on my way to a school to meet my friend and colleague Sue DeCaro so that we could present part one of our Conscious Parenting series when the accident happened. I was in rush hour traffic on a very busy road. I was probably the 20th car stopped at a red light when out of nowhere, a car slammed into the back of my car. I called Sue right away to ask her to come pick me up where we were so that she could bring me to the workshop (because yes, I truly am that committed to the work that I do!). She immediately turned around to come to me. 

As Conscious Parents, We Must Accept The As-Is Of A Given Situation

Guest Post By Erin Taylor Author of,  

Connection and Kindness: The Key to Changing the World Through Parenting

Leaving the grocery store this morning, I noticed a mom holding the hands of her two young children as she waited to cross the parking lot to get to her car. With the amount of information one can glean from a very short observation of another, it appeared that the mom seemed relaxed and peaceful, as did her two children.

As I reflected on this woman's demeanor, it got me to thinking about how I used to feel as mom of very young ones, and I believe that more often than not, I looked anything like this mom today; for I remember very often feeling stressed and unhappy, with a furrowed brow and all. I am certain that people who saw me must have wondered why I looked so tortured and miserable. This was unsettling to me, especially as a mom who had suffered the death of her first-born daughter. How can parenting be so difficult and stressful? Why is it so hard? And I felt guilty for not enjoying it more than I did, especially given my life experience.

Milton's Secret A Book by Eckhart Tolle Is Now Being Turned Into A Movie

You may remember when we reviewed and gave away a copy of Milton's Secret in November 2010. 

"Milton's Secret will take your child on an internalizing thought provoking journey. Milton seeks to utilize his own inner power. Through lessons learned from being in the now he's empowered to turn a negative scary situation into an eye opening positive engaging experience. Eckhart Tolle & Robert S. Friedman do an exceptional job teaching children how to see the light in others and live in the now." Carol Lawrence and Stacy Toten - Intentional Conscious Parenting 

We have some wonderful news to share with you. Milton's Secret is being made into a movie!


"Eckhart Tolle and Barnet Bain have a vision for Transformational Entertainment. Movies about conscious parenting and conscious living."

Be Strong By Bending

Many of you know Dr. Wayne Dyer transitioned from the physical realm to the spiritual realm this past month. We personally were greatly impacted by his wisdom. His knowledge will go on teaching humanity millenniums to come. 

A Tribute To Wayne Dyer. Watch now for free. 

Backpack Snacks: Budget Friendly Foods on the Go [INFOGRAPHIC]

This month's guest post is frrom FoodInsight.Org

We know the kiddo's are heading back to school. It's always a great idea to keep a list of snack and lunch ideas handy. We do encourage you to use handy reusable containers for your lunches to reduce waste. One of our favorites is Bentgo boxes.

The summer is winding down. Backpacks are filled, brand new notebooks, pens and pencils. But how good are backpacks at transporting your child's snacks to school? To keep that thirst for knowledge going all day, students need to keep themselves full and focused. Turns out, there are plenty of nutritious options to stuff in their knapsack. 

NEWS FACTS

• Trail mix is bite-sized and packed with protein & healthful fats   tweet

• Add a handful of chocolate chips to your trail mix for a sweet boost of antioxidants   tweet

• Cereal cups are easy to grab and go with ready made portions   (You can also use reusable containers to fill with nutritious cereal and granola.)

• The fiber, protein, and whole grains in cereal cups keep kids feeling full   tweet

• Cereal cups can be eaten with or without milk 

• Top celery or carrots with nut butter, sprinkle with dried fruit like raisins to make Ants on a Log   tweet

• Ants on a Log are fun for kids to make on their own!  tweet

• Portable snack packs offer lots of different options in your grocery aisle 

• Make your own portable snack packs by stacking turkey, ham, or pepperoni with cheese on whole wheat crackers   tweet

• Yogurt cups, tubes, and smoothies are excellent source of protein & calcium   tweet

• Yogurt cups, tubes, and smoothies are perfect for an energy boost before afternoon activity   tweet

• Yogurt cups, tubes, and smoothies last up to 4 hours without refrigeration   tweet

ABOUT FOODINSIGHT

5 Budget friendly foods that will survive a backpack and provide on-the-go nutrition (tweet) ensuring kids get the fuel they need without the muss or fuss

Trail Mix

Ants on a Log

Portable Snack Packs

Yogurt Cups, Tubes, & Smoothies

FoodInsight (www.FoodInsight.org) serves as a nutrition and food safety resource for consumers, health professionals, journalists, educators, government officials, and students. Food Insight provides important and timely resources on a variety of topics such as weight management, diet and nutrition, food safety, and food production.

Quantum Kids

We came across the topic of special gifted children over 25 years ago. We are fully excited to see it finally starting to become mainstream. This video captures the abilities of children who can tap into the quantum field and relay messages of the books contents. They are literally reading the books through vibration and touch.

 

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Thank you for acknowledging how important your role of a parent truly is.~ Carol Lawrence and Stacy Toten 

 ~ Supporting The Inner Light Of The Children ~ 

How To Make Herb Butter With Your Children

Many moons ago together we took a horticulture class in college. One of our assignments was to make organic herb butter. We fell in love with herbs and their many medicinal properties and uses.

Here's one of our favorite recipes we like to make all the time. It's perfect for snacks on breads and crackers, add it to your steamed veggies or baked potatoes. It's up to your palate how you use it. This is an easy and quick recipe to make with your children. They could actually do it themselves with your guidance.

Here is the ingredients and supplies  you will need.

* Softened Butter
* Your favorite dried herb
* Bowl for mixing
* Spoon for stirring

Set your butter out on the counter until it's soft and pliable.
Add butter and herb to your bowl.

Easing back-to-school jitters By Mary Jo Rapini

School bells are ringing and kids are everywhere. As you drive slowly through school zones, you can see and feel the excitement in the air. Kids are walking to school, getting out of buses, and being dropped off on the curb. Some of them look excited and are laughing, while others look confused, withdrawn and afraid. Parents have a powerful influence over their child no matter how old their child is in regards to their school-year success. Easing back-to-school jitters is an important step that parents should prepare for and encourage their child to prepare for as well.

"School jitters don't begin the first day of school. Most likely, they were going on during the last third of the summer."