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Category archive: 05-12yrs (kid)
09 May 08 | Comments: 6
This may be the most useful tip you'll get all year. From James: My son had the bejebus scared out of him by the autoflushing toilet when we were just starting training. I don't blame him, me holding him over...
Pistachios: yummy AND good for kids' fine motor skills09 May 08 | Comments: 0
Rachel's found a new favorite snack: I have just discovered the greatest fine-motor food work and added variety to my four year old's diet! I bought pistachios for a cake I was baking and my son was intrigued. I showed...
The magical, multifunctional properties of painter's tape08 May 08 | Comments: 12
Jen in Toronto loves her blue tape! For good reason: We use painter's tape a lot around our house, and we take a roll with us when we travel. It makes a great impromptu electrical outlet cover. We use it...
Let young readers choose their own books07 May 08 | Comments: 6
Cris's tip for helping encourage a lifelong love of books: I was given a tip that kids need the opportunity to choose their own books, rather than always reading what we think they would like. For some reason, my daughter...
Game tokens help teach saving skills30 Apr 08 | Comments: 8
Mike's hack may make that trip to Chuck E. Cheese slightly more bearable: After my 4.5 year-old son's friend's Chuck E. Cheese birthday party, I went home with a pocket full of tokens. Later that week, when my son was...
Parent Hacks exclusive: THE CRAZY PARENT WORKOUT!!!!29 Apr 08 | Comments: 3
Hey, parents! Tired of that persistent belly pooch, but too tired to work out? No time to exercise? Parent-child swim lessons coming up? What if I told you that you could get all your errands and school pickups done FASTER...
Guest post at Savvy Source: Ten easy Parent Hacks for "greening" everyday life with kids28 Apr 08 | Comments: 0
In honor of their April theme, "It's Easy Being Green," I wrote a guest post for the Savvy Source blog, Being Savvy. In it, I point to ten Parent Hacks that focus on reusing household items in creative ways. Thank...
Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's is tomorrow!28 Apr 08 | Comments: 4
They're handing out free ice cream cones at Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shops tomorrow. It should be a national holiday.
"Colorful" milk rewards kids for pre-mealtime cleanup28 Apr 08 | Comments: 11
Mari's colorful solution for getting the kids to the table: My daughter's preschool teacher came up with a fun way to encourage the children to clean up promptly for lunch. It made such an impression on our 3-year-old that we...
Amazon Friday sale 4/25/08: Fitness ball, swim diapers, Victorinox25 Apr 08 | Comments: 0
Parenthacker-friendly picks in today's packed Amazon Friday sale : More Huggies Little Swimmers disposable swim diapers (size Small, 16-24 lbs, two 12-count packages) for $14.99 (25% off). Lots of Parenthackers have talked about how versatile a fitness ball can be...
Pry Legos apart with a manicure tool23 Apr 08 | Comments: 5
From Amy: My son Henry is 4.5 and is in love with LEGOs. He is a little too old for Duplo, but a little too young for regular sized LEGO, mostly because he can't figure out how the heck to...
PC.com: When your kids know more about your computer than you do23 Apr 08 | Comments: 12
Before kids, I was a writer of computer books of the how-to variety . How does a relatively non-tech person qualify as technical book author? By sending a proposal for a "teach yourself HTML" book to publishers in 1996, back...
Keep track of medicine dosage by writing on the foil pack22 Apr 08 | Comments: 3
We've had so many good suggestions for how to keep track of medicine dosages. Here's Stacy's, specific to pills that come in little foil packs: I can never remember whether pills that need to be taken daily (antibiotics, etc) have...
Four Parent Hacks for a nag-less morning routine22 Apr 08 | Comments: 8
Have you met Vanessa Van Petten? Talk about "most likely to succeed!" She's an incredibly motivated blogger about the teen perspective and the author of the parenting book “You’re Grounded!” I first came across her writing in a guest post...
Easy supper: Chicken Taco Mac and Cheese20 Apr 08 | Comments: 5
Amyaus sent this in as a busy weekday recipe, but I think it's perfect for a lazy weekend supper, too. Good for the crockpot! It's that time of day when your child is clingy, crying, all around too much for...
Recycle Tyvek envelopes into sails for homemade boats19 Apr 08 | Comments: 3
Beth's got a tip for floaty-boat building: It's spring here in New England and my 2.5yo is into making boats for all the muddy puddles. Usually our spur-of-the-moment boats are made out of something like packing peanuts or foam packing...
Amazon Friday sale 4/18/08: Magnifying desk lamp, prep bowls, diapers18 Apr 08 | Comments: 2
Here are my picks in today's Amazon Friday sale : If you've got any small-parts builders or modelmakers in your home, this desk lamp/magnifier would make their projects go a whole lot easier. Great for budding scientists, too. It's $29.99...
Old page-a-day calendars make great doodling paper18 Apr 08 | Comments: 4
Dana's found a great way to squeeze some utility out of page-a-day calendars: My toddler loves to color using any surface that she can find. I always need paper to hand to her while I'm trying to cook or clean...
A keepsake journal "triples" as travel entertainment, art preservation, and a grandparent gift15 Apr 08 | Comments: 9
Jennifer's smart, simple idea for capturing some of her daughter's spontaneous art: My four year-old loves to draw and color. I found one way to preserve her art -- by giving her a journal book full of blank pages. We...
Word choices can take the sting out of a disagreement14 Apr 08 | Comments: 18
Sara is teaching tact and open-mindedness early: Can a word be a hack? If it can, I propose "mistaken." We've introduced this one to our 2 year old, and it just feels right. We use it to admit we are...
When the table's set for a dinner party, serve your kids a fancy meal before the guests arrive14 Apr 08 | Comments: 5
I'm so impressed with Suzy and her husband's ability to model calm in the face of a dinner party! What fun, and what lovely learning opportunities and memories for their kids: My husband and I were having a dinner party...
Amazon Friday Sale 4/11/08: Lots of good stuff!11 Apr 08 | Comments: 1
Lots of good stuff showed up in today's Amazon Friday sale ! (Sale prices last through today only.) Remember manual carpet sweepers? Little rotary brushes inside pick up debris just by getting pushed back and forth over the floor. I...
A slightly healthier "fruit snack"09 Apr 08 | Comments: 7
Rednexmama read the labels on so-called "fruit snacks" -- those little packages of gummy fruit candies -- and found quite a difference between brands: I actually found super-yummy fruit snacks that aren't just sugar under the guise of "made with...
Family Fluxx: The best Friday game night we've had in a long time05 Apr 08 | Comments: 21
We're a family of board- and card-game players, and Friday evening usually finds us huddled on the floor playing something-or-other. Our kids are 8.5 and 4.5 (one reads, one doesn't) so it's not always easy to find games that are...
Major league baseball game too long for the kids? Try half of a minor league double-header05 Apr 08 | Comments: 3
John's hack heralds the return of Spring... A great hack for taking your kids to a minor league baseball game is to look for doubleheaders. Given the tight schedule, minor league clubs often double up on games when one is...
Baseball cap + a clip-on light = a better bedtime reading lamp03 Apr 08 | Comments: 3
Brian's a smart guy and a good storyteller: Thing 1 wants the bedtime story. Thing 2 is kept awake by the light spilling into his room from Thing 1's light. Can't turn off the light in Thing 1's room, though....
Best of Parent Hacks: Garden fever03 Apr 08 | Comments: 3
Sun! Warmth! Flowers! It's all happening around here, and I'm dancing a little jig in my back yard. Last year, the kids and I scattered a single packet of mixed seeds (encouragingly named "Children's Garden") and got a whole patch...
Prima Princessa Presents Swan Lake: DVD for ballet-loving preschoolers02 Apr 08 | Comments: 93
The possession of double X chromosomes often correlates with two other genetic conditions: Princess Mania and Ballet Obsession. Such has always been the case with my daughter, despite my lack of girliness. She saw her first real live ballerina at...
Up to 50% off Kids and Family DVDs at Amazon01 Apr 08 | Comments: 2
Amazon's having a great Kids and Family DVD sale ...and not just the duds that you wouldn't consider buying! I found several favorites in the mix: Mrs. Doubtfire (PG-13 with some mature themes, but SO funny and a great conversation...
Cylindrical concrete form tubes double as tall toy storage01 Apr 08 | Comments: 8
There is much inspiration to be found at the home improvement warehouse. Check out Jenn's elegant toy storage solution: With three small children, I frequently find myself tripping over toys that the kids don't have a place for. We have...
Cookie sheets keep the countertop clean during bulk sandwich-making31 Mar 08 | Comments: 11
KS found a clever way to further streamline lunch prep: I am learning to love mass production of packed lunches. One thing particularly pesky is the crumbs left on the counter after sandwich assembly. Enter the cookie sheet! Ahh –...
Wean kids off sugary breakfast cereal by mixing it with the unsweetened version27 Mar 08 | Comments: 30
Daphne's hack struck a nerve, because sugar cereal happens to be one of my hot-button issues. I like to think I'm pretty moderate and open-minded about most things -- including junk food -- but sugar cereal sends me straight to...
"Supercharge" bubble bath with a whisk26 Mar 08 | Comments: 9
Jaimi's one sentence hack will keep tub-goers happy: To maximize a bubble bath, or to revive sad looking suds, use a whisk -- you'll need to use much less soap. Related: Lots of good bathtime hacks await in the Bathtime...
Egg shakers: a non-candy Easter basket alternative21 Mar 08 | Comments: 11
We discovered egg shakers in a Music Together class. Smooth, round plastic or wooden egg-shaped maracas -- these simple musical instruments are a sensory treat. So pleasant to hold and roll, fun to shake (the sound is loud enough to...
Dye raw eggs for Easter21 Mar 08 | Comments: 1
Here's how Daphne avoids the inevitable hard-boiled egg inundation that comes with Easter egg decoration: Every year for Easter, my five-year-old boys are wildly excited about decorating eggs. There is a week of anticipation, thirty minutes of setup, and five...
Oft-forgotten germ spreader: lip balm!21 Mar 08 | Comments: 8
Lisa's on the germ hunt: My family has been passing the cold bug around to one another. So I've been trying to catch all the ways that our germs are spreading (buying new toothbrushes, careful with sharing cups etc). I...
Too Tarts SmartChoice spray candy masks bitter medicine flavor20 Mar 08 | Comments: 4
Before you scoff at this hack (as I did when I heard the words "spray candy"), read on. Jessica's onto something: The last two times my five year-old son has been prescribed cough medicine the taste has been completely awful....
Straightening iron flattens curly bangs so you can trim them at home20 Mar 08 | Comments: 5
Rednexmama came up with an excellent haircut hack: I refuse to spend $10 just to get my daughter's bangs cut, but it can be more than a little challenging since she has naturally curly hair and it's next to impossible...
Keep a quick-grab snack bag packed19 Mar 08 | Comments: 6
From Debbie: We keep a reusable lunch-type bag in our cupboard stocked with various nonperishable snacks (one of each type per child) so that we can grab it at a moments' notice; say for that trip to the ER after...
Best of Parent Hacks: Easter fun18 Mar 08 | Comments: 2
The sugar headache from Valentine's still hasn't worn off, and now I'm being assaulted by the Easter candy displays. We're Jewish so we have other seasonal treats to look forward to (Mmmm. Matzoh.), but at least one Cadbury Creme Egg...
New online educational game/learning service from PBS18 Mar 08 | Comments: 2
There's plenty of good (and free) play to be had on the Web, with the first stop for preschoolers often being the companion site for a favorite television network (PBS Kids, NickJr., or Playhouse Disney). PBS has just upped the...
Games you can play with a flat sheet18 Mar 08 | Comments: 7
Sometimes, disorganization paves the way for a new activity we never would have discovered otherwise. (Ha! An argument for chaos! The justification continues.) We were playing in the basement last night amid folded piles of clean laundry. My 4.5 year-old...
Bug Bam bracelet repels mosquitos safely18 Mar 08 | Comments: 7
Deb passed along this kid-friendly alternative to chemical mosquito repellant: My little girl can't stand having anything on her skin, including sunscreen, and I hate coating her in toxic bug repellents. But she's one of those mosquito-magnet types. So now...
Create a mural outline by "tracing" a television character17 Mar 08 | Comments: 11
Wow. Look how John and Heather created a character-inspired mural: My wife wanted to create a Little Bear mural for our boys' bedroom when inspiration hit her. She paused the show on our big TV and used tracing paper to...
Instant oatmeal makes a portable, filling in-flight meal (with gummy bears for the descent)06 Mar 08 | Comments: 11
Lewellen solved the problem of kid food on the airplane like this: Is this even a hack? It worked well for us and I was pleased with myself for thinking of it... On recent cross-country flights, I had to provide...
Attune Wellness bars: Chocolate + probiotics = mmmm04 Mar 08 | Comments: 8
In what may be the most delicious PR pitch ever, I recently received a box full of Attune Wellness bars and an accompanying email that suggested them as a good on-the-go snack hack. In my experience, energy bars (or protein...
Fitted sheets make the best forts03 Mar 08 | Comments: 12
Alexandra's husband stumbled onto a good fort-building trick: My husband discovered a great hack when he grabbed a sheet to use for building forts for our two small children. The first sheet he grabbed was a king-sized fitted sheet, so...
Torani syrup helps the water go down01 Mar 08 | Comments: 8
Here's how Darienne makes water more palatable to her preschooler: My 3 year-old has always been a big milk drinker. We tried to get him to drink more water by giving him water with a bit of unsweetened fruit juice....
Tie a ribbon around the doornob to help out a forgetful Tooth Fairy28 Feb 08 | Comments: 7
Suzy's come up with the perfect way to assist the Magical One with her dental "work": Is the tooth fairy sometimes forgetful in your home? We find that ours sometimes flies right by accidentally. To correct this problem, we've put...
Video game addiction. Talk amongst yourselves.26 Feb 08 | Comments: 40
We are the happy owners of a Nintendo Wii. We fit the demographic to a T; the kids play a bit in the afternoon, and then Rael and I fire up Guitar Hero after hours. (I made a full confession...
Parent Hacks: The Zen Habits Collection26 Feb 08 | Comments: 0
As part of our guest post swap, Leo Babauta asked me to choose twenty of my favorite tips and write them up as a post for Zen Habits. "Favorite" is impossible to capture because there's more wisdom and good will...
Rain pants work for cool-weather beach visits26 Feb 08 | Comments: 1
Debbie's got a great tip for off-season beach visits (a wonderful time to go): We sometimes head to the beach when it's too cold for swimsuit (or when we're headed off somewhere else after). I pull the kids' rain pants...
Tie video game time "currency" to chores25 Feb 08 | Comments: 11
Rich is a man after my own heart: My kids were addicted to their video games and would give us attitudes when we asked them to do chores. So we fixed that right away: we put the kids on a...
Pencil cup as toothbrush holder25 Feb 08 | Comments: 5
The Hengsts have a solution for those fat, character toothbrush handles that don't fit into the holes of a regular countertop toothbrush holder: We have the problem in our house that kids' toothbrushes don't fit in the traditional toothbrush holders...
Britax sale at Amazon - one week only24 Feb 08 | Comments: 6
Just got a note from the Amazon folks: turns out a week-long Britax sale is underway -- up to 20% off "rarely discounted" car seats and strollers. I've been a Britax user of convertible car seats for years and love...
Pets as social skills "teachers"22 Feb 08 | Comments: 6
I've got so much to say about this hack (sent in anonymously), but I'll save my comments till after you've read it: I'm a single (widowed) mom to one daughter. We live in a very rural area so my daughter's...
Play "Marco Polo" in public to keep track of out-of-sight kids21 Feb 08 | Comments: 12
Remember "Marco Polo," that classic call-and-respond swimming pool game? Mari and her husband use it as a way to keep tabs on their kids in public places: Okay, I know it sounds crazy. We always call out 'Marco' when we're...
Use the coffeemaker to heat water for quick oats19 Feb 08 | Comments: 3
Stephanie's found a safer way for her son to cook his own breakfast: My 9 1/2 year-old son loves oatmeal for breakfast every morning. He's old enough to want to do things on his own but not old enough to...
Clear Valentine clutter by making a collage15 Feb 08 | Comments: 3
Jill from Atlanta is really on the ball if this project is already done by February 15! It wasn't until my house became littered with little Valentines that I remembered this trick. I had my kids gather up all the...
Valentine hack: Valentine's Day "mistletoe"13 Feb 08 | Comments: 0
What a cute idea -- from Katy: Valentine's Day is all about showing love. So don't forget giving an extra dose of hugs and kisses at home. Cut 2-3 hearts out of construction paper, string them up anyway you like,...
Valentine hack: How to make heart-shaped cupcakes without a special pan12 Feb 08 | Comments: 4
12 Feb 08 | Comments: 0
Fran's got a fantastic twist on handmade cards: Type Valentine's Day phrases and symbols in a Word document in various colors - with the line-spacing set at 2-3 inches apart. Add images of the kids' faces and crop or size...
Valentine hack: Pancakes with powdered sugar hearts10 Feb 08 | Comments: 2
Pamela's sweet Valentine's breakfast is a treat for the whole family: I like to do something special for my family first thing in the morning, so I make pancakes and then put a heart template on top of one before...
Valentine hack: Cut out magazine "lipstick lips" to make a kissy collage09 Feb 08 | Comments: 0
Jennifer's hack makes the sociologist and media critic in me jump for joy: I like to gather all those beauty mags (that now gather dust since having kids) and cut out all those fabulous shiny lips on all the make-up...
Valentine hack: Homemade chocolate roses are easier than you might think08 Feb 08 | Comments: 6
What a lovely idea -- great for older kids who get a kick out of using the stove. From Leah: My students do a fundraiser every year for Valentine's Day by making candy roses and selling them. It's actually a...
Valentine hack: Gift cards for teachers07 Feb 08 | Comments: 5
Michelle's adapted a popular holiday teacher gift for Valentine's Day: My newest favorite thing to do (for teachers and camp counselors and bus drivers and all of those people you want to recognize but don't want to spend too much...
Valentine hack: Fingerprint heart prints07 Feb 08 | Comments: 0
Carrie's girls took "handmade" to a new level: We usually do something easy - since we also find the day creeps up on us. Last year we made cards using two fingerprints to look like a heart. We also sent...
Valentine hack: Torn paper valentines05 Feb 08 | Comments: 0
Another simple card-making activity for toddlers on up. From Rose: Yesterday my daughter and I made Valentine's Day cards. We folded a piece of red construction paper into quarters and then cut it in half to make two cards. To...
Valentine hack: Heart-shaped cookie cutters are useful for more than cookies05 Feb 08 | Comments: 1
Zed's shares the versatility of the humble cookie cutter: Nothing is a better investment for Valentine's Day than heart-shaped cookie cutters in various sizes. Aside from the many craft possibilities, they instantly make boring food seem like Fancy Valentine's Food,...
Summer camp fairs help kids AND parents make smart choices04 Feb 08 | Comments: 3
Suzy (friend of Sara!) is getting an informed jump on summer camp: I have a five year-old who's not very clear on what he DOES like to do (as opposed to what he DOESN'T like to do). This weekend was...
Valentine hack: Turn fabric scraps into window decorations04 Feb 08 | Comments: 6
By now, we expect brilliance from Rookie Mom Whitney, and she doesn't disappoint: My husband says they are hideous, but we already have window decorations up for Valentine's day, and my three- year old BOY says, "I love them. They...
Super Bowl Sunday: No crowds at the usual weekend family hot spots01 Feb 08 | Comments: 7
I trot this Super Bowl hack out every year, but it's such a good one! From Jay: I've noticed that a lot of people are into this whole "football" thing, which means they'll be at home (or a bar) watching...
Valentine hack: Add a little "homemade" to boxed character Valentines01 Feb 08 | Comments: 3
Jill's subverting the dominant Valentine Character Paradigm! (Any mom that hacks @#$% SpongeBob is tops in my book.) I'm one of those moms that doesn't allow characters to seep into my house very often. But since the kids' friends really...
"The Mr. Men Show" to premiere on Cartoon Network 2/4/0831 Jan 08 | Comments: 9
Got a promo email today from the folks at Cartoon Network. But before I tell you what it's about, let me give you a little backstory. I basically can't stand the Cartoon Network. Now I like Looney Toons and Scooby...
Tips for RV travel with kids? Talk amongst yourselves.30 Jan 08 | Comments: 8
Tiffany asks: We plan to rent an RV to travel with our 4 yr old and 7 yr old during Spring Break this year. Beyond your typical travel tips (we've traveled quite a bit in their little lives), I would...
Hack request: Send us your Valentine's ideas!29 Jan 08 | Comments: 15
I usually start thinking about Valentine's Day on about February 10...too late to have a relaxed class valentine-making session with my kids. But this year is different! We've got our red construction paper and fancy scissors all ready to go....
Organize kids' clothes into color-coordinated "capsules" so they can pick their own outfits28 Jan 08 | Comments: 16
Sara needs to dress my daughter, or at least help me pick out her clothes. I love clothes, and Miss J has so many clothes it's a tad embarrassing. Even worse, the daily question of what to wear was turning...
Toddler-friendly tofu26 Jan 08 | Comments: 25
People forget that tofu is fantastic toddler food. It's white, bland, nutritious, and can "hide" in all sorts of other foods. Here's Kristen's suggestion: Trying to get your baby to eat tofu? Stick it in miso soup! You can buy...
Sylvania power failure lights do double duty as night light and flashlight25 Jan 08 | Comments: 1
Regina has a great solution to "how do you find the flashlight when the power goes out and it's dark?": Recently, you were asking what we do when the power goes out. For Christmas, my folks gave us a package...
Keep bedside Pedialyte chilled in an ice bucket25 Jan 08 | Comments: 3
From the very resourceful Jess: Our 10 month-old daughter has a nasty bug ... a cough, accompanied by some flu symptoms. So we're giving her Pedialyte. But when she wakes up coughing in the middle of the night, she wants...
Storing girls' hair accessories? Talk amongst yourselves.23 Jan 08 | Comments: 33
Suzy wonders: Have you heard any good hacks for how to store girls' hairbands? They are a tangled mess in the drawers. You can't put up 20 hooks on the walls, right? What can be done? This seems like a...
Swim shirt doubles as a winter underlayer23 Jan 08 | Comments: 2
So smart! From Katherine: Don't forget you can get another season's use out of that sun-proof swimming shirt from last summer! Remembering the outdoors-persons' motto "cotton kills," I wanted to put a layer of non-absorbent material against my boy's skin...
Kitchen timer: Multi-purpose tool of the gods!22 Jan 08 | Comments: 21
We've talked before about how helpful a timer can be in all sorts of parenting situations. I really liked the way Katy (author of Adventures in Parenting) expanded on the examples, so I thought it would be a great time...
Teaching kids to declutter their own toys22 Jan 08 | Comments: 5
Sara's hack would work as well now, while most of us are in declutter mode anyway: I want Miss J (2 1/2) to learn how to "declutter" things herself, so before Christmas I told her that since she'd be getting...
Instant s'mores20 Jan 08 | Comments: 7
Thanks a lot, Debi. Now I feel the irresistible urge to run to the grocery store for fixin's. My 4 yr old daughter wanted a "marshmallow sandwich" for dessert and had her own crazy ideas of how she'd make that...
How to tell if a clementine section is seedless or not18 Jan 08 | Comments: 6
Thank you for this, Elana -- I've mangled hundreds of clementine sections looking for seeds! With mandarins and clementines (the perfect sized citrus fruit for kids) in season, we're going through tons of them in our house. I want our...
Best of Parent Hacks: Keeping warm during the winter17 Jan 08 | Comments: 2
The weather outside is still frightful, so I thought it might be nice to dig through the archives for some of our best cold weather tips: Polar fleece makes crib extra cozy Shoe organizer in the coat closet keeps gloves...
Make a week's worth of school lunches17 Jan 08 | Comments: 8
Cynthia's batch lunch prep makes so much sense, it's a wonder we aren't all doing this. We have to bring lunch to daycare 3 days a week. I used to struggle with getting lunches ready in the morning, and with...
Swaptree: Declutter and get free stuff at the same time15 Jan 08 | Comments: 3
Decluttering and reducing consumption are really two sides of the same coin. So it's nice when you come upon a service that helps you do both. Swaptree is a website that allows you to swap your books, CDs, DVDs, and...
Discount calendars make good art supplies15 Jan 08 | Comments: 0
Joe and Cathy say: grab up those clearance-priced calendars! My wife discovered a great parenting hack: By this time of January, novelty desk calendars are deeply discounted - like, $2 each. Some of these are a great source of inexpensive...
Prolong handwashing with a song15 Jan 08 | Comments: 7
Several Parenthackers have mentioned this particular trick in the comments of other posts, but I felt it bore repeating given cold-and-yuck season. From Heather: This is the time of year where germs take up residence at our home and refuse...
Bedtime sore throat soother: Warm milk and honey14 Jan 08 | Comments: 17
Coughs abound this time of year. Here's Melissa's soothing remedy: Here's a great way to soothe a sore throat without having to resort to medicines.... Microwave a mug of milk as you would to make hot chocolate. But instead of...
Toy combination: Mr. Potato Head + Play-Doh14 Jan 08 | Comments: 3
Squishy Mr. Potato Head! Both he and playdough are more fun together. From veteran Parenthacker Jill (from Atlanta): My son and I had a rainy, indoor day yesterday (yeah! rain in Atlanta!) and I pulled out the often-neglected playdoh. We...
Clementine crates as toy storage13 Jan 08 | Comments: 6
Reuse those clementine crates! From Mason: In the winter, my family of three goes through a crate of clementines about every two weeks. Instead of just throwing away the little crates, I have started using them for storing my two-year...
Make detangling more fun (less unfun?) by turning it into a game08 Jan 08 | Comments: 14
Ah, the joys of detangling long hair. Here's how Amy manages the tresses: Both my girls have long hair. One has long, blonde locks with an ultra-sensitive head, and the other has very curly, red hair and just doesn't like...
Shred wrapping paper to use as gift bag filler25 Dec 07 | Comments: 1
From the Hengsts: We shred our used wrapping paper to use as filler in gift bags. Our kids love to help us get the paper ready to put into the shredder. If the pieces are too big, they get to...
Spread out the gift-opening to keep Christmas morning manageable24 Dec 07 | Comments: 8
Another holiday hack from Mel, who seems to have the realities of holiday logistics well thought-out: I know everyone has their own treasured and time-honoured family traditions, but....since we have one young child and an older child who is easily...
Color code gift tags to streamline distribution from under the tree24 Dec 07 | Comments: 5
Mel's gift tag hack (for those of you madly wrapping gifts tonight): I had the kids make tags for Christmas gifts out of plain cardstock. We store all the gifts under the tree until they're ready to leave the house...
Holiday craft: Bread dough ornaments23 Dec 07 | Comments: 2
There's still a bit of time for holiday crafts now that vacation is underway! Margaret shared her recipe for homemade dough ornaments: The holidays bring out the crafty in me! Here's a recipe for bread dough ornaments. I still have...
Creepy, irritating children's books21 Dec 07 | Comments: 47
It's amazing how well-aligned our opinions are about creepy or just plain irritating children's books. And here I thought Hayley and I were the only ones who had a problem with Big Nutbrown Hare! Based on your comments, Parenthackers' least...
Make a pomander or an ornament out of an orange21 Dec 07 | Comments: 1
Mmmm, smells good. From Katherine: Take one orange (or clemantine, or whatever... but full-size oranges smell nicer) and stick whole cloves into it, pointy end through the skin. You can lay these out to make a picture, or abstract lines,...
Gift idea for Dad: Sharpie-embellished wallet20 Dec 07 | Comments: 5
Brian's daughter used Sharpies to craft a unique gift for Dad: My "parent hack" turns out to be the brainchild of my, well, child. I recently bought a new wallet. It's a simple tri-fold style, made of cotton-poly blend (as...
Working at home while the kids are on holiday break20 Dec 07 | Comments: 5
Guest post by our friends at Work It, Mom!, a wonderful community site for working moms. School vacation is fast approaching and daycares are getting ready for their holiday break -- which means that if you have to get some...
Movie-inspired dinners: Ratatouille19 Dec 07 | Comments: 4
Rosemary's story gives us eggplant-lovers hope: With all this talk about sneaking healthy food into our children's meals, the Disney/Pixar movie Ratatouille provides us a wonderful opportunity to get our kids eating healthy without all the trickery. I started making...
Alternative trading card games: Xeko and Bella Sara19 Dec 07 | Comments: 57
It's easy to forget that trading card games are actually games, not just collections of tradable pieces of paper. And while Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic the Gathering and the rest dominate the field, two trading card games attempt to go in...
Tie-dye tissue wrapping paper18 Dec 07 | Comments: 9
As promised, Melissa's instructions for creating gorgeous tie-dye wrapping paper out of plain white tissue. This looks easy enough for young toddlers, and the results are stunning. Thank you, Melissa!
How to make flu shots less scary for kids18 Dec 07 | Comments: 12
Shots are scary. No two ways about it. But the anticipation of shots makes it so much worse. Here are some smart ideas for making shots as innocuous as possible (and, yes, I tried to come up with a pun...
My Mommy's Tote winner!14 Dec 07 | Comments: 1
Sounds like we all have treats in our bags of tricks! Thank you to all who shared their favorite purse-based kid distractors. In addition to the very popular keys and cell phone here are some more ideas: Food, including Dum...
How to save your kids' letters to Santa13 Dec 07 | Comments: 2
Those letters to Santa are priceless mementos of holidays gone by. Here's how Jill (creator of countless parent hacks) manages to hang onto them: If you'd like to keep the letter your child writes to Santa, but like mine he...
Fitness First exercise ball winner!12 Dec 07 | Comments: 1
What fantastic ideas you shared for staying active indoors when the weather outside is frightful. Highlights: Dance parties Hullabaloo (we like playing this, too) Tag Pillow fights Obstacle courses and mazes Let your kids follow along with your exercise routine...
Super Woobee winner!12 Dec 07 | Comments: 1
Congratulations, Jessie! You win the Super Woobee! I guess the rest of us are going to have to return a few gifts so we can buy our own. Because who can resist a product that can do all these things?...
Kids' exercise ball good for fun and fitness11 Dec 07 | Comments: 97
Of all the toys we've tested this year, the one that gets the most consistent and varied play is a kid-sized exercise ball from First Fitness. Not only is it good fun to roll around the basement, it encourages both...
Craft paper makes cheap, recyclable wrapping paper11 Dec 07 | Comments: 21
I've finally accepted that I just can't deal with wrapping paper. As much as I love beautifully-wrapped gifts, I can't abide buying paper that's meant simply to be ripped up and thrown away. I've used newspaper in the past, but...
The most luscious baby blanket you get to keep for yourself10 Dec 07 | Comments: 170
Parents deserve blankies, too. We're out there, fending for our kids, trying to keep all the plates spinning and the tummies full, getting pulled in opposite directions, all on little sleep and less recognition. Sometimes we just need to curl...
"Cookie of the Month Club" makes a great holiday gift10 Dec 07 | Comments: 7
I love Heather's idea for simplifying holiday gift-giving: This year, we are trying to find the perfect gift to give those who have everything. It can't be too expensive, too hard to travel with, and we want it to somehow...
Britax Parkway booster seat 30% off at today's Amazon Friday sale07 Dec 07 | Comments: 4
I'm a big fan of Britax car seats -- they're well-made and comfortable, but they're also expensive. Nice to see the Britax Parkway booster seat pop up in today's Amazon Friday Sale . It's 30% off ($69.99) today only.
BabyLegs: More than just baby leg warmers06 Dec 07 | Comments: 146
Baby leg warmers? Who would think that such a simple, obvious idea would be such a godsend? Nicole Donnelly, apparently. Not only did she come up with the idea to keep her daughters' legs warm during "nakedy time," she has...
How to encourage family conversation around the table06 Dec 07 | Comments: 4
Suzy's got a great hack for holiday mealtimes and beyond: During the holiday season there are many occasions to gather around the table. Consider this game that encourages children and adults alike to share about their day as well as...
Softies: A craft book for the (relatively) non-crafty05 Dec 07 | Comments: 117
Ok, so this book called to me from the front table at Powell's City of Books. I happen to have a little thing for items made of felt. I don't sew, I don't craft (really), but something about the bold...
Laundry room pegboard holds missing socks05 Dec 07 | Comments: 2
Gisela's answer to the Riddle of the Missing Sock: I can't take credit for this hack; I read it somewhere, but I've forgotten where. I used to keep a drawer full of socks missing their partners after doing the laundry--I...
Simple holiday traditions04 Dec 07 | Comments: 0
What a pleasure it has been to read about your favorite simple holiday traditions! The music, the cards, the food, the tree, the Menorah, the candles, the Advent calendar, the dreidels, the neighborhood light displays...it was enough vicarious warmth to...
Return address stamps or labels double as ID30 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
Michael's idea is one to keep in mind during the holiday shopping season: My child loves stickers and stamps. Any time he sees a hand stamp or sticker he wants one. So what better way to teach your kid how...
Plastic soap holder as crayon container30 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
Tracy's smart hack works at home or on the road: We use a plastic bar soap holder (the kind that has a top and a bottom that you could use for travel or in your shower). Take crayons out of...
Featured find: Flip Video Camcorder29 Nov 07 | Comments: 7
I love watching videos of my kids, but I hate dragging out the video camera. I find that inserting a camera between myself and the experience often turns me off to taking videos in the first place -- which is...
Simple, beautiful Hanukkah crafts29 Nov 07 | Comments: 2
Hanukkah's next week! But you've still got time for some lovely crafts (if crafts are your thing). Check out Amber's Hanukkah crafts at the always-fabulous Kids Craft Weekly. Toblerone chocolate box as a template for a Star of David stamp?...
Use del.icio.us to track gift ideas29 Nov 07 | Comments: 4
If you're not already using a social bookmarking service such as del.icio.us, consider signing up for an account. So easy to use, so useful. I used del.icio.us to build my daily link roundups, and as a way to for us...
Free art supplies: Paint color chips from the home improvement store28 Nov 07 | Comments: 16
[Note: When I first posted this hack, I mistakenly thought Andi was talking about actual paint samples, but several readers pointed out she was referring to paint chips, the colorful cards that display different paint colors. Sorry about the mixup....
Motion-sensing switch takes over when kids forget to turn off the lights28 Nov 07 | Comments: 13
We are huge fans of the motion-sensing light switch in our house! From Ellen: My kids seem unable to remember to turn off the bathroom light. We use compact fluorescent bulbs, so the power usage is trivial, but it's a...
Still got Halloween candy lying around? Give it to the "goblins."27 Nov 07 | Comments: 14
In case you're still trying to clear out the odd Almond Joy leftover from Halloween, Judi's tip may help, even at this late date: Believe it or not, I am *still* hearing parents complain about what to do with all...
How to remove a band-aid painlessly27 Nov 07 | Comments: 3
Rachael shares her solution to an age-old problem: Here’s my hack for removing those pesky band-aids that kids love to put on and HATE to have taken off: If you dip a cotton ball or q-tip in oil (olive or...
Travel tip: Clean the DVDs!27 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
Ginger reminds us: If you're traveling with a toddler and a portable DVD player, remember to clean the DVD's before you get on the plane! Believe me, that will be 2 minutes well spent. Didn't I hear somewhere (here?) that...
Bar cookies save trips to the oven (and burned cookies)26 Nov 07 | Comments: 3
Jill from Atlanta shares the practical realities of baking cookies with little kids in the house -- worth keeping in mind given that holiday cookie-baking season is right around the corner: I love baking cookies with my kids. But the...
Uses for old mustard and ketchup bottles24 Nov 07 | Comments: 2
Ashley rescued the mustard and ketchup bottles from the recycling bin: If you wash them really well, empty mustard and ketchup bottles make great bathtub squirt toys. If you use powdered tempera paint, they also make great dispensers! Related: Don't...
Helping an anxious child get to sleep20 Nov 07 | Comments: 12
Rachel has a lovely, gentle way to help her anxious daughter prepare for sleep: My first grade daughter has recently begun having anxieties about bedtime. She lays down and remembers all sorts of bad thoughts about the day, which tend...
Cheap indoor entertainment on dark rainy evenings? Talk amongst yourselves.19 Nov 07 | Comments: 29
Stephanie asks: I have a friend at work who has an 12-year old step-son and a 2-year old son at home. Now that it's dark after work, she can't take the boys to the park to play. The family lives...
Tricks for kick-starting after-school conversations19 Nov 07 | Comments: 29
Kelly shares a tip for getting kids to talk about their school days: Instead of asking a young, school age child "How was school today?" try asking "What did you do in school today?" The former gives the child the...
Handkerchiefs are gentler on runny noses than tissue18 Nov 07 | Comments: 16
Grandpa was right! From Kelly: Here's one hack that my sister-in-law taught me. It may be obvious, but I thought it was helpful. When your child gets a cold, instead of using tissue after tissue all day (leaving piles of...
How to remove those annoying paper wristbands17 Nov 07 | Comments: 3
I HATE those wristbands! Thank you for this, Duane! You know when you go to the water park and they give you those paper bracelets that are specially made to tear to pieces if you try remove them, so you...
MotherTalk review: The Daring Book for Girls16 Nov 07 | Comments: 39
By now you've certainly seen the turquoise cover of The Daring Book for Girls sparkling on the bookstore feature tables and the bestseller lists and the morning shows and YouTube and the blogs. Whereas The Dangerous Book for Boys was...
Give kids pill-swallowing practice with Red Hots candies16 Nov 07 | Comments: 11
Another brilliant hack from veteran Parenthacker Jill (and it's yet another way to use up your kid's Halloween M&Ms): The tequilla shot medicine hack made me remember having to learn to take pills when I was a kid. Because Sudafed...
Use movie soundtracks to steer kids away from the tube14 Nov 07 | Comments: 22
Kirsten's brilliant hack brings to mind all the great movie soundtracks I used to listen to as a kid. Star Wars is the big one, but pretty much any John Williams score would do. Remember Close Encounters of the Third...
Use a hula hoop to simplify ball-catching games with young kids14 Nov 07 | Comments: 3
Kirsten's ball-playing hack would work well indoors, too. (I'm thinking rainy day basement play.) You know when you're playing catch, soccer, baseball or such games with preschoolers or toddlers? They always move really close to you in between turns, and...
Parent Hacks Store Featured Find: Yellow pages-shaped booster seat! Hilarious!13 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
Rael and I found ourselves with three kid-free hours at Powell's City of Books over the weekend. Pure heaven. Besides all the lovely reading I got done, I stumbled onto this clever phonebook-shaped booster seat in the kid section. It's...
Easy "fruity nutty" oatmeal13 Nov 07 | Comments: 3
Megan's hack may inspire our breakfast this week... My well-meaning partner bought a huge bag of dried fruit and nut mix thinking that it would provide a handy snack for our 14-month-old son. Of course our son hated it and...
Deceptively Delicious: A Parenthacker sneaks and tells12 Nov 07 | Comments: 25
We recently talked about all the controversy surrounding the release of Deceptively Delicious, the cookbook that advocates hiding vegetables in kid-friendly food. When I asked for Parenthackers' first-hand tales, JT wrote this gem of a sum-up: My guess is, if...
Paint swimsuits on naked dress-up dolls12 Nov 07 | Comments: 7
Making old toys feel new again -- always a great hack. From Sarah: Some plastic dress-up dolls I bought for my daughter only came with one outfit, and there are no others available through the manufacturer. I get tired of...
Amazon deal: Half Century of Hits DVD sale12 Nov 07 | Comments: 0
Amazon's got a clever promotion going on now: the "Half century of hits" DVD sale . Movies from every decade from the 50s till now, including classics we grew up with (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Planet of the Apes --...
"Build your own" dinners simplify meals for folks with allergies12 Nov 07 | Comments: 4
Shauna's DIY dinner hack: My son and I have several food allergies while my husband and daughter do not, so to avoid making three different dinners every night, we've implemented one or two "Create Your Own" nights. We use pita...
Plastic bag "balloons" keep kids distracted while grocery shopping11 Nov 07 | Comments: 9
I love it when I "spy" parent hacks in public places. From Sara: I was at the grocery store the other day, and saw a kid in the checkout line playing with a "balloon" made of a plastic produce bag...
Note monthly class payments in your calendar09 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
Here's how Kirsten remembers those pesky class fees: Now that my daughter participates in a couple of activities (dance and piano) that require monthly payments, I've started writing the amount due on the calendar for the first class of the...
Use excess Halloween candy as cookie ingredients08 Nov 07 | Comments: 8
Excess Halloween candy. Is there any other kind? Jeff's hack won't exactly reduce the sugar consumption in your house, but perhaps you can bake up a few batches and freeze them for the holidays? Or foist them on your coworkers?...
Create a visual inventory of kid clothing purchases07 Nov 07 | Comments: 4
I was stunned by the Linda's smarts on this one: I like to shop online for great bargains on clothes for my kids at the end of each season and put things away for next year. However, in the thrill...
Serve hot chocolate with a straw06 Nov 07 | Comments: 10
Here's how Kirsten cuts down on the cocoa mess: I used to hate giving my kids hot chocolate because they'd make such a mess with it. Then, I figured out that it was the spoons (which they always want to...
Tequila-drinking rules for giving medicine06 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
From Antares (an "Austin hackin' mama"): I knew the college drinking days would come in handy for something someday. Remember how if you took a shot of tequila and made sure to drink something else *before* you swallowed again it...
Playing the cloud game with props05 Nov 07 | Comments: 1
Cloud-watching season may be over where you live, but we're having an unusual spate of sunny weather here in Portland. Duane recently shared this cloud-watching experience with his daughter: Everybody knows the cloud game, where you try to spot animals...
The Daring Book for Girls is out!03 Nov 07 | Comments: 6
If you'll recall, we had a fascinating discussion after my review of The Dangerous Book for Boys...touched off by the question: what about girls? Ladies and gentleman, I give you... I have a review copy of The Daring Book for...
Quick, homey warmed apple slices03 Nov 07 | Comments: 9
My son and I had an hour at the bookstore the other day, and I found myself thumbing through the recipes in Kids Cook 1-2-3. It's a lovely cookbook full of three-ingredient recipes kids can make themselves...pretty inspiring for time-challenged...
Red popsicles help reduce the trauma and drama of a bloody lip02 Nov 07 | Comments: 6
Dave has discovered a perfectly good reason to keep the freezer consistently stocked with Haagen-Dazs bars: Hersch did a face plant and bit his inner lip pretty badly. There was a lot of blood and he wasn't up for letting...
Use Twitter as a baby-album-of-sorts02 Nov 07 | Comments: 5
Kim uses Twitter as a repository for baby memories: If you don't already know, Twitter is kind of a blogging/chat/texting hybrid. Its main appeal is convenience: you can update it via the Web or IM software or through cute little...
Expand the dress-up wardrobe with discounted Halloween costumes01 Nov 07 | Comments: 0
Rather than raid the dress-up bin for Halloween, Wendy raids the after-Halloween sales for the dress-up bin! Great setup for future costume swaps, too. My 3 year-old daughter loves playing dress-up, but we only have a couple of items. I've...
Halloween hack: Baby lotion takes the face paint off31 Oct 07 | Comments: 2
Kelly's hack came in just under the wire! I bought my daughter some of the face paint "markers" they have at the grocery store this time of year. She had fun getting her face painted and then painting my face...
Soothe a fever with a damp washcloth kept bedside31 Oct 07 | Comments: 4
kittenpie's bring-down-the-fever hack: To help comfort a kid with a fever, one of the great things is of course to run a damp cloth over their forehead, neck, and limbs. My child's bedroom is not near the bathroom, though, so...
$10 instant rebate on health bars ends today31 Oct 07 | Comments: 10
In case you're looking to offset the candy consumption (or are a bulk buyer of health bars), Amazon's offering a $10 instant rebate on selected Clif, Luna, Odwalla, Larabar, and Probar bars The deal ends today: buy $39 worth, and...
Halloween hack: A "trick" to help kids remember to say 'thank you'31 Oct 07 | Comments: 6
Julie's hack is tough, but it works for her family. Last year I got so tired of having to remind my kids to say "thank you" at every house that this year I told them every time I had to...
Creative ways to present unfamiliar foods29 Oct 07 | Comments: 6
Dren of DrenNotes offers her take on the creative presentation of food: I've been reading a lot of buzz on the interweb about Deceptively Delicious, mostly dealing with the ethics of "sneaking" in fruits and veggies into a child's diet....
Is hiding vegetables in food deceptive?29 Oct 07 | Comments: 41
I've been mildly amused by the debate swirling around Jessica Seinfeld's new cookbook, Deceptively Delicious, which is built on the premise of getting vegetables into kids by hiding them in kid-friendly foods. The book is a popular hit (no doubt...
Glow stick fun (potential Halloween hack?)28 Oct 07 | Comments: 12
Rachel didn't specifically connect this hack to Halloween, but I am...could be a fun giveaway! To all you parents who haven't tried these yet (or lately). Glow sticks are fun!! I know it seems like a big "duh," but every...
Take a vacation toy inventory27 Oct 07 | Comments: 5
Smart travel planning, from Duane: Going on vacation? If the kids are planning to bring more than 1-2 toys, then set up a space for them to "pack" their toys just like you pack your clothes and supplies (even if...
Amazon Friday Sale for 10/26: Huggies Overnites, Mr. Clean Magic Erasers26 Oct 07 | Comments: 1
On sale at Amazon, today only: Huggies Overnites size 5: $19.99 for two 27-count packs (that's about .37 per diaper if you keep track of these things). Keep in mind that Huggies are on their way to a price increase...
Household chores meet online gaming: Chore Wars26 Oct 07 | Comments: 2
This takes the advice to "turn work into game!" to new heights. From Sarah: I wanted to let you know of a cool website I found that helps my husband and I get work done around the house without arguing...
Halloween hack: Tootsie Pop ghosts as decoration and hand-outs26 Oct 07 | Comments: 2
Amie's hack makes me want to run out and buy Tootsie Pops! I love that these simple little decorations can double as the Halloween handout. I just bought my annual ginormous bag of Tootsie Pops and realized other parenthackers might...
This will help you feel good about your child's Halloween costume24 Oct 07 | Comments: 6
Mom: Honey, what would you like to be for Halloween this year? Spiderman? Captain Jack Sparrow? Or maybe you can still fit into that Buzz Lightyear costume we got you a couple years ago? Kid: Yeah, uh, I want to...
No-spill car breakfast: oatmeal in an insulated mug24 Oct 07 | Comments: 5
I discovered this while camping, and then again while rushing out the door to get my late-risers to school: oatmeal is the ideal on-the-go breakfast, especially when served up in an insulated travel mug. Oatmeal stays hot, can be eaten...
DIY art display23 Oct 07 | Comments: 13
WG's hack will help you make sense of the incoming avalanche of art: My kitchen had a fridge that was covered in paper and some blank walls that were crying out for decoration. I like the idea of framing kid...
Halloween hack: Give toys instead of candy23 Oct 07 | Comments: 27
One way to avoid leftover candy is to avoid candy altogether. Says Judi: No candy at our house. Stickers or doodads from Oriental Trading instead! Anything leftover goes into the arts and crafts bin for use throughout the year. Bonnie...
How to have an allergy-free Halloween22 Oct 07 | Comments: 9
Several of you commented on the difficulty of managing the Halloween treats when your kid has a peanut allergy (or any other type of food sensitivity for that matter). Here's another place to look for good ideas: How to have...
Squid Soap: good idea, poor execution22 Oct 07 | Comments: 19
I was recently sent a review sample of Squid Soap by the makers of Airborne. The parent hack potential was high: the idea is that kids "ink" their hands with the built-in stamp, then wash with the soap for 20...
Halloween hack (redux): Save leftover candy for holiday gingerbread houses21 Oct 07 | Comments: 4
Maribel reminded me of a past hack we used with great success a couple years ago: use leftover Halloween candy for holiday gingerbread houses. Tags: Halloween
Cool Mom Picks: Safer Toy Guide19 Oct 07 | Comments: 5
Holiday toy shopping may be a little trickier this year, what with all the recalls. If you're not sure where to begin, start with the Cool Mom Picks Safer Toy Guide. Believe me, these fabulous women know their stuff. From...
Non-TV ideas for organizing children during social gatherings? Talk amongst yourselves.19 Oct 07 | Comments: 20
As the holidays approach, so do the potlucks and dinner parties and get-togethers that mark the season. My good friends, Mary Wells and Bryce, wonder how folks occupy the kids once the adults are ready to settle into a little...
Metal pet tags make great backpack IDs16 Oct 07 | Comments: 4
A fantastic idea, and it makes a decent fashion statement, too. From JT: When my son started kindergarten, I wanted to put an ID on his backpack. The luggage tag I got him disappeared pretty quickly, but the next time...
Calm coughing without medication15 Oct 07 | Comments: 18
With infant cold medicine being pulled from the shelves, and the safety (and usefulness) of regular cough medicine in question, it's good to have a few cough-suppressant hacks up one's sleeve. Here are Christiane's: Our oldest son (of three children)...
Keeping Lego sets organized: Ziplocs and cookie sheets12 Oct 07 | Comments: 26
It was my son's birthday last week, and he got two wonderful Lego building sets. Of course, his first inclination was to rip open the boxes, dump the contents on the floor and start building -- which was fine, except...
Dry erase marker on the bathroom mirror: an all-purpose noteboard09 Oct 07 | Comments: 9
It's cold season again and, right on schedule, we're all sniffling around here. So was Tiffany and her family, and here's how she kept track of all the medicine doses: My entire family was sick last week (me, my husband...
"I Spy" keeps kids awake in the car08 Oct 07 | Comments: 14
Here's how Jennifer keeps the car drowsies at bay: Thought I'd share: My kids (2 1/2 and 4 yrs old) fall asleep very easily in the car. Sometimes it's a good thing, but sometimes they fall asleep during 15-20 minute...
More good toy deals to be had at Amazon right now03 Oct 07 | Comments: 1
Amazon's got some good deals on toys right now, so if you're the stockpile-the-holiday-gifts type, it's worth a visit. A few of my favorites, all on sale for over 50% off: Brilliant Basics Ready Steady Rider: That thing isn't tipping...
Use old mattresses as jumping pads03 Oct 07 | Comments: 24
Debbie's response to a recent IKEA mention: My three-year-old son wet his inexpensive toddler mattress (SULTAN BLUNDA) all the way through (yeah, he's got talent--as does my husband for forgetting to put a pad on it that day). We replaced...
Rubber bracelets as sippy cup ID label30 Sep 07 | Comments: 9
Meghan's found yet another use for those stretchy rubber/silicone bracelets: I stumbled upon this hack last year while visiting Disney World. The hotel we stayed at had a deal where you could buy a cup for a set price, and...
iPod photos distract wiggly toddlers29 Sep 07 | Comments: 5
Margot's hack proves, once again, that you have more than enough justification to buy an iPod. I noticed the spate of iPod hacks. I have another semi-hack. I keep some family pictures on my iPod nano, which can't show movies....
FM Fall Shopping Guide: Little Hands Help Around the House28 Sep 07 | Comments: 0
My next post is up at the FM Fall Shopping Guide: Little Hands Help Around the House. Inspired by a recent thumb-through a Montessori catalog, the post follows a theme we've discussed at length: giving kids the tools and opportunity...
Malt vinegar as vegetable "dip"28 Sep 07 | Comments: 6
Kids surprise you in their food preferences. My kids (aka Finicky 1 and Finicky 2) reject entire categories of food, and yet will eat almost anything from a Chinese, Japanese or Thai restaurant (something about soy sauce). For that reason,...
Free(ish) family business cards simplify playdates and more26 Sep 07 | Comments: 16
Business cards are handy for the non-businessperson, too. From Shawna: Our family uses VistaPrint to order free business cards with all of our contact info. The cards are free when you pay for shipping, so they work out as a...
IKEA: Real furniture kids can build24 Sep 07 | Comments: 4
From the Obvious department: IKEA recently came to Portland. Cause for city-wide celebration! Free child care! Swedish meatballs for less than a buck! And (oh yeah) cool, cheap furniture! But there's more. My almost eight year-old son is always looking...
Keeping delicate fruits unbruised in lunchboxes22 Sep 07 | Comments: 2
We're making the most of late summer fruit with a peach or nectarine going to school in someone's lunch almost every day. Problem: ripe fruit often gets mushy and bruised from the inevitable roll around the lunch box. Solution: place...
Arrange groceries in the cart so cold and frozen items get bagged together21 Sep 07 | Comments: 20
Teri's good-thinking grocery hack: When I go grocery shopping with my toddler, I keep the cold or frozen items together in the cart and at checkout. That way, I end up with nicely sorted "cold" bags. (The items keep each...
Best bag for toting diapers and laptops? Talk amongst yourselves.21 Sep 07 | Comments: 14
We've all got our own ideas about what makes for an ideal diaper bag. But when you add a laptop into the mix (as many of us Parenthackers have) the requirements change. Tricky to store electronics and juice boxes in...
Another way to stir natural peanut butter20 Sep 07 | Comments: 10
We've discussed how best to stir natural peanut butter before, but Nathan's got another idea: If you are into buying all-natural peanut butter (ingredients: peanuts, salt) you know that there is a half inch or more of oil at the...
Intercoms as baby monitors20 Sep 07 | Comments: 2
Nothing like multi-use gadgets. From Jason: When I had an office in the basement, my wife and I bought a pair of intercoms at Radio Shack so we didn't have to shout back and forth. It turns out that these...
Cheapass Games: For the true cheapass, they're free19 Sep 07 | Comments: 6
Another Rael find! Cheapass Games -- imaginative, simply-produced board, dice, and card games (and even a few computer games). From the site: Cheapass Games come with the bare essentials: boards, cards, and rulebooks. If you need anything else, we'll tell...
Crust-haters will eat "inside out" sandwiches made with bread heels18 Sep 07 | Comments: 9
Geoff passed along this brilliant bread crust hack, no doubt spurred by my story of my mom's little white lie about the relative nutrition of the crust vs. the soft inside bits: for my entire childhood, my dad was constantly...
Do rewards kill motivation? Talk amongst yourselves.18 Sep 07 | Comments: 14
Thanks to a recent Lifehack.org post, I just read an Alfie Kohn article (written in 1993) about how rewards get in the way of intrinsic motivation. Some of you have mentioned Kohn's name in the comments before, but I've never...
Frozen raspberries cool down hot oatmeal17 Sep 07 | Comments: 12
Alisa's hack will put a dent in your frozen berry stash: My 16-month-old daughter loves oatmeal for breakfast. But she's really impatient - I make the real deal, which takes a whole ... what, five minutes to prepare? Add 'cooling...
Mashed beans disappear into chili16 Sep 07 | Comments: 10
Adrienne's mom understood the power of a diversion: I don't have any children of my own (soon!) but checked out your website after reading about it in Maclean's. Had to share this little tidbit from my own childhood. When my...
Joe's Goals doubles as an online behavior reward chart15 Sep 07 | Comments: 2
I wrote about the goal-tracking app Joe's Goals last year, but Kathryn suggests its as useful for older kids as an online star chart/sticker chart: I ran across a tool called Joe's Goals, and the minute I hit the site...
Keeping sliced apples from browning14 Sep 07 | Comments: 12
Andrea's hack would work as well for lunchbox-toting schoolkids: My 17 month old, always a good eater, finally showed an interest in eating fresh apples, peel and all. Since it's much easier for her to hold a slice, I've been...
Keep track of friends' street addresses and locations with Google Maps13 Sep 07 | Comments: 9
Miss Zoot's hack is the best use of Google Maps I've heard about in a long time: Every time my son gets invited to a friend's house or a party, or if I even just pick up someone to take...
Turn old baby bottles into mess-free paintbrush holders12 Sep 07 | Comments: 5
Carrie's sister is an extremely smart woman. (Thanks for thinking to send this hack in, Carrie.) Here's a hack my sister taught me. All of her kids are well past the nursing/bottle stage, and they all love to do various...
Meal orders reduce the morning madness11 Sep 07 | Comments: 13
I hope Laura's triplet daughters know how good they have it! In the mornings before school, there are so many decisions to make. What to eat for breakfast, what snack to take to school, what to have for lunch. These...
Real Simple Family: full of good hacks04 Sep 07 | Comments: 11
I couldn't resist -- Real Simple Family -- a special issue of the lifestyle mag Real Simple -- found its way into my shopping cart this afternoon. It's full of good hacks, including taping a few unused board games together...
Set up a homework station to make afterschool assignments easier01 Sep 07 | Comments: 4
Melanie's tips for setting off on the right foot with homework: I’m a teacher as well as a mom. A good homework hack is to have a place or station set up where your child can do homework. Have pencils,...
Homework tips? Talk amongst yourselves.31 Aug 07 | Comments: 22
Jill from Atlanta had a wonderful idea: while I get back on my feet posting-wise, how about a little open discussion about homework tips? Most of us are likely in the grace period before the big-time assignments, so let's talk...
DIY Learning Tower to encourage pint-sized kitchen help? Talk amongst yourselves.26 Aug 07 | Comments: 32
In the comments of the kid-friendly kitchens post, Marta asked: Anyone have a hack for improvising one of those Learning Tower things? They cost a lot. I agree -- a lovely product, but the price is prohibitive. When I was...
Nonslip shelf liner keeps tablecloth from slipping21 Aug 07 | Comments: 19
Leah's hack would simplify craft time at our house considerably: Oilcloth tablecloths are excellent - they're durable, bright and wipe clean when the kids inevitably spill on them - but they slide around a lot. I put rubberized shelf liner...
Ice cubes help keep a sick kid hydrated20 Aug 07 | Comments: 8
Here's Kip's novel method for keeping the liquids going into his ailing daughter: Sarah (now 5) was having a sore throat. Quick strep test came back negative, so a virus was suspected, and the doctor said to keep liquids going...
Kid-friendly kitchens help even the youngest pitch in19 Aug 07 | Comments: 17
Heather wrote up a fantastic post on her blog, Oh My Stinkin Heck, about encouraging kids to help in the kitchen by making it more accessible to them. Really, the topic is much bigger than that -- it's about honoring...
Record your own storytelling CD16 Aug 07 | Comments: 10
Sarah's hack would work well for bedtime, sleepovers, travel, or road trips: For a cool bedtime (or anytime) CD, record yourself, grandparents, siblings, etc. reading your child's favoritie books. They can even tell stories they made up or (especially for...
Track medicine dosage right on the bottle15 Aug 07 | Comments: 6
Excellent hack from Kristi: Perhaps it’s “Mommy Brain,” but I sometimes forget where I am in the dosage schedule of my son’s medicine. I found it helpful to use a Sharpie, which I have on hand anyway for all the...
Encouraging the next generation of hackers14 Aug 07 | Comments: 10
From Sara: I suspect that many Parenthackers, like me, have their antenna constantly up for "how can I teach my kids to love computers like I did when I was a kid" (for me, that mostly means programming). Since Josie's...
Custom silicone bracelet as preschooler travel ID13 Aug 07 | Comments: 18
With the summer travel season upon us, it's a good time to revisit the ways in which we can make our lost kids "findable" in crowded places. We published a hack last year suggesting rubber bracelets as ID, but Dawn's...
Pipe cleaner party hats11 Aug 07 | Comments: 1
Jill's got a great idea for your next birthday party: I saw a fun idea I thought kids might enjoy for a birthday. The party "hats" consisted of five sparkly pipe cleaners per person. They could be made into any...
Danger Rangers DVDs teach kids about common safety pitfalls08 Aug 07 | Comments: 1
Through action adventure storylines and songs catchy enough to be labeled "brain worms," the Danger Rangers work toward their real mission to battle the 90% of childhood injuries which are preventable through education. Season 1 also covers a vast array...
"This Little Piggy," the extended version08 Aug 07 | Comments: 6
Duane's kids get extra tickle time with a song that never gets old (for them, at least): You know, "this little piggy went to market" gets to be a pretty boring game for everybody but the baby. Wanna bet? My...
Glow sticks as travel night lights07 Aug 07 | Comments: 11
Allyson's hack does double duty: after-dark fun, and an easier bedtime: I just discovered a wonderful hack while on vacation. We brought along glow sticks to play with on the beach after dark, but discovered they worked great as night...
Coffee sleeve makes frozen drinks easier to handle07 Aug 07 | Comments: 3
Art's hack should be posted at all quick-mart checkout counters: With warm weather upon us the requests by my children for the {insert brand name}ee frozen drink of choice at the local convenience store has risen with the temperature. Along...
Consistent front-back swimsuit color makes kids easier to track in the pool06 Aug 07 | Comments: 8
Richard's hack is one that would never become apparent unless you're in the situation: I made the mistake last year of buying my son a set of swim trunks that are red on the front, but black on the back....
Turn a hotel air conditioner into a humidifier05 Aug 07 | Comments: 4
From Mommyprof: If you are in hotel with the little ones and find someone develops a cough in the hotel room, you can make an impromptu humidifier by soaking a bath towel and then draping it over the room air...
Martha Stewart (and staff): Parenthackers?04 Aug 07 | Comments: 7
There's a fine line between the hacker-ish DIYers and the stylish crafters. Case in point: the Martha Stewart Omnimedia folks got in touch to tell me about Good Things For Kids, a new special issue of on newsstands now. It's...
Presto Printing Mailbox: Send email and digital photos to offline relatives03 Aug 07 | Comments: 50
Grandpa wants regular updates and photos of the kids but doesn't have (or want) a computer or an Internet connection. How to bridge the generation/technology gap? Presto's solution is delightfully simple: plug a Presto Printing Mailbox in at Grandpa's house,...
Setting up family cell phones for emergency contact03 Aug 07 | Comments: 8
While your older kids are out and about this summer, being able to get a hold of each other in case of emergency becomes crucial. For those kids who use mobile phones, Betsy's suggestion makes good sense: * Make sure...
Extra shower curtain rod as swimsuit drip-dryer03 Aug 07 | Comments: 11
A timely hack from the Hengst family: Put an extra shower curtain rod in your shower to hang wet towels and swimsuits from in the summertime. The water drips right into the shower and not on the floor. If you...
Pipe your car's navigation system into your kid's portable DVD player02 Aug 07 | Comments: 3
Eirik's brilliant road trip entertainment hack for GPS/navigation system users: Our four year old son has been very interested in the navigation system I am running while we're out driving. He leans over to follow it closely and it's actually...
An easier way to apply sunscreen to kids' faces02 Aug 07 | Comments: 9
Cheri's summer-simplifying tip: I have found a way to make applying sunscreen to my kiddo's face SO much easier! I was always finding myself chasing their faces around and telling them to "Look up!" Finally I had my son lay...
Develop a Shutterbug: Time with Kids with Cameras01 Aug 07 | Comments: 2
When I heard about the "A Little Perspective" kids' photo contest, it struck me as golden Parent Hacker opportunity for some late summer family fun. Get out the camera, but this time you may get to be the subject or...
Can you clean a computer keyboard in the dishwasher? Talk amongst yourselves.01 Aug 07 | Comments: 27
Sally wonders (as do I): Slashdot had a story about a successful dishwasher sanitizing method for keyboards. Apparently, they have more bacteria than a toilet!!??!! But I’m not sending this to fuel the fears of the germ-o-phobic – I’m more...
Easy cooking project: Homemade tortillas27 Jul 07 | Comments: 8
My kids both have an attraction to anything squishy. They love all of those stretchy, gel-like trinkets flooding the market, and all manner of playdough. When I can muster the patience, I pull out the flour, water, salt, baking soda,...
Coffee stirrers make good juice box straws25 Jul 07 | Comments: 2
Why do the juice box straws always end up at the bottom of the bag? Winnie's solution: I had a ton of coffee stirrers left over from a party and figured I'd just use them for craft projects. However, I've...
Frozen yogurt tubes stand in for ice cream treats24 Jul 07 | Comments: 15
From Sara: I wouldn't normally buy yogurt in tubes, but I picked some up the other day and noticed a suggestion to freeze them. Sold! I now keep "frozen yogurt" tubes in the freezer for a healthier treat than ice...
Socks stop cold water bottles from dripping23 Jul 07 | Comments: 6
Try Ana's smart hack on your next summer outing: At the zoo, it was extremely hot and humid so I pulled out the water bottles we brought to keep hydrated. Within seconds, the cold bottles, of course, started dripping condensation...
Special for Parenthackers: Swap stuff at Zwaggle23 Jul 07 | Comments: 10
Ryan very thoughtfully included all us Parenthackers in an invitation to use Zwaggle! I haven't tried it myself, but it looks fascinating, especially during summer clear-out mode. Thank you, Ryan! There's a cool website, zwaggle.com, and using points instead of...
You're reading this? I figured everyone's reading Harry Potter!21 Jul 07 | Comments: 19
It's the day half the world's been waiting for: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is out, and kids and adults everywhere are holed up in beds, on couches, and in sunny corners reveling in their last few hours at...
Geography lessons no one can resist20 Jul 07 | Comments: 3
Michelle (author of the wonderful blog Scribbit) came up with a brilliant way to teach her kids about geography. This would be a wonderful way to build excitement for summer travel. To help teach my kids about the world around...
Warm bath lotion in the bathwater19 Jul 07 | Comments: 1
Marykz's daughter's getting the luxury treatment! My daughter doesn't like to get out of the warm bath and have to have cold lotion spread on her dry skin. So, I put the (closed) bottle of lotion in the warm bath...
"No tattling zone" helps parents relax during park playdates17 Jul 07 | Comments: 15
From Sara: Kara and her local playground moms sit at a picnic table while the kids play. Around this table they've drawn a circle in the dirt. Why? Well, the circle is the "no tattling zone". Brilliant, isn't it? It...
GeekDad: Watch live bugs under a blister microscope16 Jul 07 | Comments: 0
I've got a new post up at GeekDad about the fantastic blister microscope -- our new gadget for spying on live bugs.
Kids learn, work, and have fun at "Camp Mom"14 Jul 07 | Comments: 6
Look what veteran Parenthacker Jill and her kids are up to this summer: We've implemented "Camp Mom" here and I'm putting them thru the paces every morning. After breakfast they both do a work paper at the table (if I...
Mow "pathways" in the lawn12 Jul 07 | Comments: 10
Katherine's (neighbor's mother's) practical hack simplifies a relentless summertime garden chore: My neighbor told me that her mother used to keep the kids occupied while she was cutting the grass by first cutting some fun pathways and rooms in the...
Cut grapes into mini-bunches08 Jul 07 | Comments: 17
Discovered while preparing for my daughter's 4th birthday party (which I'm doing RIGHT NOW): When serving a bunch of grapes to a group of kids, cut it into "mini-bunches" of 5-8 grapes each, then pile them in a bowl. The...
How to put tights on your daughter06 Jul 07 | Comments: 21
Another example of information "everyone knows" (but really doesn't), from Sara: Watching my husband dress my daughter, I realized that my "standard" way of putting on tights, learned from my mother, might be obvious to me but not to everyone...
Laminate summer camp packing lists04 Jul 07 | Comments: 8
Aliza's hack would also work well for back-to-school supply lists (not that anyone's thinking about school right now): My daughter has been going to camp for the last couple of years. Each year the camp sends me the same packing...
Free entertainment: the pet store02 Jul 07 | Comments: 21
Sherry's easy toddler outing: Perhaps others might not think this idea rocks quite as much as I do, but I have 19 month-old twins and finding fun and reasonably-priced things to do with two curious toddlers is tough. Some places,...
Where to stick the alphabet magnets with a stainless steel refrigerator?28 Jun 07 | Comments: 17
Whitney's tip: For those who have magnetic letters or oth