Parent Hacks spontaneous summer break ends 9/7/10

Well. My "short" summer break from posting here has turned into a very long summer break! I didn't intend for it to happen that way, but am so grateful it has. This has been the best summer on record for the Dornfest family for the simplest of reasons...time. Lots of it. Time to not know what we were doing on a given afternoon, time to go on unplanned adventures, time, when the kids begged to stay out or up a little bit later, to say YES.

Which is great for me, but what about Parent Hacks? Alive and well, and back to regular programming after Labor Day. I can't wait to reconnect next week!

In the meantime, how has your summer been?

MyLifeScoop: 6 sites to get your kids cooking

MyLifeScoopLate summer is the perfect time to get your kids busy in the kitchen. In my next post for the Intel-sponsored site MyLifeScoop, I explain why, and I share six sites that will inspire you to cook with your kids.

Related: More featured stories at MyLifeScoop

MyLifeScoop: Boost garage sale profits with tech tools

MyLifeScoopDeclutter, make some money, and meet your neighbors at the same time! Garage sales are a win-win-win, especially during the summer. In my next post for Intel-sponsored MyLifeScoop, I talk about how I used tech tools to boost our summer garage sale's profits.

Related: More featured stories at MyLifeScoop

DIY summer bracelets

via Between The Lines

A classic summertime activity. Beautiful way to use up scraps of fabric. Via Craftzine (that endless source of crafty fun).

Amazon today only: iPhone FM transmitter car plug-in 63% off

iPhone FM Transmitter My car is old enough that it lacks a built-in jack for an iPhone or an iPod. Does this deter my husband, who is not only physically connected to his iPhone, but a big-time music lover with a creative, diverse collection of songs? Of course not!

For our last few road trips, he's plugged in a dongle like this that transmits music stored on his iPhone over a free FM channel through my car stereo's speakers. Fantastic. It actually works (at least in those places where the radio gets reception.)

Today, Amazon's got the GTMax FM Talk/Transmitter on sale for $14.99, which is 63% off the list price of $39.99. If you've got a road trip in your future, this might be a nice tool to have along for the ride.

Bandaids as temporary outlet covers

Bandaid outlet cover Ah, the creativity that comes from necessity. Amy's travel babyproofing hack:

We rented a little cabin in very rural South Dakota over the holiday. Because it was so far away from any town we packed our food and most every thing else that we needed except...outlet covers for little fingers!

We ended up using bandaids found in the depths of my purse! Yahoo! It worked great!

Related: Use blue painter's tape to babyproof a hotel room

Target sponsors free admission to museums and art events on July 16-18

Target Arts & Wonder
Target's hosting a nationwide art appreciation festival. On July 16-18, over 80 museums and art institutions in 30 cities nationwide will offer free or reduced-price admission. Check the Target Arts & Wonder site to find out what's happening in your neighborhood.

MyLifeScoop: For the Birds, or, field guides for your smartphone

MyLifeScoopSummer is in full swing, which means I am busy trying to nudge my family out onto the trail. In my next post for the Intel-sponsored site MyLifeScoop, I talk about how you can turn your smartphone into a decent field guide for identifying birds, bugs and wildlife.

Related: More featured stories at MyLifeScoop

Parent Hacks admin: the joy of summer...offline

When Parent Hacks goes un-updated days at a time, you can assume that something's going on in my life that keeps me away from the computer. In the recent past that hasn't been good news; school- and family health crises dominated my attention for quite some time. But now, I'm so, so happy to report, what's keeping me away from the computer is glorious summer.

As much as I love my community online (perhaps because of it), I've also come to appreciate the beauty of single-minded, offline time with my family. There's a mental peace that comes when you stop multitasking and  devote your full attention to where you are and who you're with. Right now that's at the pool, picking berries, on a road trip, at the beach, digging in the garden, and playing at the park. We're having a pretty low-key summer -- a few small trips to visit family, one week-long day camp for each kid -- otherwise it's just summer at home in Portland, where the sun has FINALLY come out.

The start of this summer has been the best in years. Perhaps it's because it wasn't the usual end-of-school skidding-to-a-stop-after-crash-landing. It felt like a celebration. I would have thought, after six months of newly home schooling my 10 year-old son, that summer would yawn before me as more time to fill with interesting but exhausting activity. Instead, our home schooling time has just brought us closer, and increased my delight with both of my kids (my daughter turned 7 last week).

Keep sending in your hacks and links...I'm here and will be all summer. But if a few days goes by between posts and Twitter updates, you can safely assume I'm hiking, pitching the tent in the back yard, or eating ice cream. How about you? What are your summer plans?

Cover healing umbilical cord site with a cotton nursing pad

Nursing pads Kim calls this the "rising moon." When I saw her hack in my inbox, I thought it had something to do with Twilight mania! Then I remembered the book is called New Moon, and that I'm not as connected to pop culture as a few other people I know. (Hey, I just watched the first Twilight movie last week.) (And Robert Pattison is cute, but to me he'll always be Cedrick Diggory.)

Where was I? Oh yes, writing a long, rambling, unrelated intro to a very smart one-sentence hack for parents of newborns!

Instead of folding down diapers so that the umbilical cord doesn't come off too early, try covering the cord with a cotton breast pad before diapering.

More: Tips for newborn parents

How to Keep Towels off the Bathroom Floor

via www.earnestparenting.com

How did she do it? Amy details the long experiment in teaching her sons to hang up the bathroom towels. It's an interesting example of how design and functionality go hand-in-hand. In other words...make it easier to clean up and (most of the time) people are more likely to try.

Amazon deals: Harmony universal remote, Popular Science magazine

Popular Science Just came across two great Amazon deals today:

I often announce fast-turnaround Amazon deals on Twitter, so if you'd like to get the full stream, be sure to follow me there (@parenthacks).

Strawberry huller cuts table food into bite-size bits for baby

Strawberry huller Becky's hack for new eaters of "people food:"

We now have an 11 month-old boy and he is learning to eat table food. To quickly cut our food into small, evenly-sized bites, I used a strawberry huller (the kind that looks like a stubby set of tweezers). It works really well with bread, cooked pasta, avocado... really any soft food. Neater than fork or fingers, and you don't have to do that awkward biting-off-a-piece-with-your-teeth thing which I think it kinda gross. The huller goes into our bag and comes out in restaurants and on the go. We love it!

Past hacks have also suggested pizza cutters and kitchen shears.

More: Feeding tips

How to deal with unfriendly teasing

via leechbabe.wordpress.com

Look at the "map" Marita developed to help her daughter deal with unfriendly teasing! A tool like this is invaluable for any kid who needs a boost with social skills. Click through to her blog post for more information. Thank you, Marita!

Five ways gadgets encourage school-age kids to participate in a road trip -- instead of tuning out

Click Here

"When I was young, if I got bored on a road trip, I read a book."

"When I was young, I had to listen to whatever music my parents played on the radio."

"When I was young, we entertained ourselves on car trips by playing games, singing songs, and telling jokes."

Sound familiar? I can't be the only one who sounds hopelessly crotchety when fielding my kids' road trip complaints. I know, I know -- times and technology and kids' entertainment preferences have changed dramatically since we were young. The fact is I love how wireless Internet has changed how we travel. I love being able to look up local eateries and attractions, and to make reservations online, and to sack out in a hotel with a movie on Netflix Streaming.

What I don't love is how tech and gadgets tend to isolate us in our own personal entertainment bubbles. There have been times, on road trips, where all four of us were plugged into our own respective devices (the driver's device was plugged into the car stereo). Not a crime for short periods, but left unchecked we lose a precious opportunity to connect and to build memories together.

Banning gadgets is impractical (and hypocritical, as I generally have my laptop along). Instead, here are some ways the family can still get their gadget fix while remaining engaged with each other.

Reading
One could argue that reading a book can be as isolating as playing with an electronic gadget. And one would be right. But no one would argue that kids should read less. One of the beauties of the road trip are the long stretches of uninterrupted time with relatively little to do (same reason I love long plane flights). Giving kids the opportunity to experience three or four hours of contiguous reading is a gift.

I'm still partial to paper books, but I can see the appeal of the Kindle (or iPad, or other electronic book reader) for travel. You've got your whole library along for the ride! It's light and easy to handle! It's fun to use! If you're thinking of getting a Kindle for the family to share or for your kids to use, get it before your next road trip.

Listening to music
It's the classic way kids have always tuned out on road trip. But I maintain that listening to music stimulates the mind in a way that compliments the real world...and not by drowning it out. Armed with an iPod or other music player (no iPod video!), one can stare out the window while listening to a personal soundtrack. I remember doing as much when I was a kid with my little cassette player, and my imagination would take flight.

Learning about geography
Here's where a gadget really shines on a road trip. With a GPS device (or GPS-enabled smartphone), kids can interact with maps in real time. More than once, our kids have pointed out stuff on the GPS that was interesting enough to cause us to detour and explore. They become active participants in how the trip plays out...you don't get more engaged than that.

Playing multiplayer games
Some electronic gaming actually brings people together. I recently wrote about a new crop of multiplayer games for the iPad that in many ways emulate the experience of playing a traditional board game. Nice thing on a road trip...no pieces to drop on the floor. I'm a fan of magnetic travel versions of regular board games, but if you're already bringing your iPad, these are worth a look.

Researching your destination
Another way to involve the kids in the trip is to let them research where you're going. Get out the laptop or smartphone and get on Yelp to find tonight's dinner (or anything else), check out official tourism sites, even "preview" a place on YouTube. The more kids can find what they find interesting about your destination, the more enthusiastic they'll be about the adventure.

Dodge CaravanAny other ideas? I'd love to hear how your family uses technology to enrich your travel while on the road.

This post is part of a series sponsored by Dodge Caravan.