How do you teach a kid to ride a bike?

For Christmas Henry (my son) was given a bike. No I am not boasting in anyway or sponsored by the company it was purchased from, it is just I thought I would share my tips and tricks on how to teach a child to ride a bike.

My Son Practicing on his new bike

First of all, they need to get their motor skills working, so learning to walk and run, is the start.

You can get little bikes which have peddles on them to begin with and help place their legs onto the peddles and push their legs round forwards to see that this how you drive the bike along.

#Importanttip Always make sure if it is a bigger bike even with stabilizers, that they wear a helmet. The earlier you teach them to wear protective gear when riding a bike the more they will stick to wearing their protective equipment.

The amount of times I see adults riding bikes with no protection at all and they are on the roads, is astonishing and crazy in my opinion. Why wouldn’t you wear a helmet to protect your head, when lets face it is a dangerous place to hit should you collide with another vehicle.

#Tip2 Take them to safe place to practice riding their bike, like to a park or a playground, so they can get used to it. Allow them space to learn on their own once they have picked up the basics then they can start riding more and their confidence with the bike grows.

Children learn as they grow and taking gradual steps is the best way to help with their development and learning.

#Tip3 I wouldn’t allow them to be near roads until they have safely picked up and are fully confident on their bikes. In the meantime, you can still teach them as they are learning to ride their bike about road safety and what to do when they reach a road, to look left and right, and only cross when all other vehicles have stopped or the road is clear.

#Tip4 Always make sure that they know not to ride off too far. I often see parents allow their children even on scooters to shoot off, but they need to learn not to go too far and if they do come across the road to stop at all times.

I hope you find this helpful, learning to ride a bike is fun and allow them to enjoy the experience as much as possible but always put safety at the top of the list especially when it comes to roads.

I have come across a video that will help you to teach your child to ride a bike aswell.

Many thanks for reading.

Carrie X

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Stressful Parenting

I wrote a blog on my site called Everyone can build a castle on wordpress.com about Dealing with Stress 

I talk about how I get so stressed out when it comes to taking my son to school, and I have even written a post called Getting children to school where I talk about getting a child to school and doing it gradually.

If you suffer with anxiety like I do, doing things gradually rather than all in one go, really helps lower the pressure and helps me get through the morning.

Once my son is in school I breath a sigh of relief and get on with my day.

Why as parents do we get so stressed?

I wish I knew the answer but I think it is the overwhelming pressure in my case of getting my son to school safely as there are some big roads in between.

I picture the worse case scenario to help make myself aware of the dangers that can happen. It makes me take extra care not to let Henry cross the road without checking whats coming first, so he will eventually learn to do the same.

My husband says I panic over the slightest thing, but I am worrier, and I can’t help but worry, it is part of my DNA I have come to realise.

Does it make me being a worrier effect me as a parent?

I think so but I’d rather be aware of the dangers rather than not, and I know that the stress isn’t gonna last for long, it is only for 20 minutes or so.

The same goes when it comes to toilet training, has Henry had an accident at school or not, so far he has been accident free, and getting to bed especially during the night can be stressful aswell, but again I just tell myself eventually he will go back to sleep, and everything will be alright.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Teaching my son about the new year

Teaching children about the new year I think is important, so they become aware of the changes the new year brings, example they know that in the new year they go back to school.

They may not understand about the new year but I think it is important to make them aware of what the new year means.

I want my son to get to know that we celebrate the new year, by taking him out, allow him if he wants to, to stay up late to see the fireworks up close or on the TV.

Let him see that we kiss when the clock strikes 12 and that we sing afterwards. If he decides later in life not to celebrate the new year then that is fine, it is up to him, but it good for him to see that the new years is a good thing not something bad.

So lets raise our glasses and I wish you all a happy new year. See you in 2019.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Getting Children to go to school

Getting a child to school can be tricky, getting my son ready for school can take its time as my son, if he could walk out the house naked or in his Pajamas he would.

I do things gradually so we gradually have Henry eat his breakfast and then at 8 minutes passed seven each morning that’s when we get Henry dressed ready for school. We have started to get him to do it himself, so putting on his pants, trousers and shirt.

I will admit some mornings I do have to wrestle with him to get him dressed. So not always easy.

Once my son is dressed I then I find everything else just fits into place. Getting into a routine is helpful, for both you as the parent and for the child so they know at this time of the day, this when we get dressed, put our shoes on, brush our teeth and one last trip to the toilet, as my fear is getting caught short, and Henry needing a toilet stop on the way to school.

Once we are out of the house it takes a long time to get to school, because my son wants to look and watch everything going passed, the birds, the buses, the squirrels, cars and other children going to school, so I make sure I leave with plenty of time.

The worst thing I hate the most is rushing, and if I can avoid it I will do.

If they do have a melt down on the way then stop, get down to their level and explain that it is OK, and try and take their mind off of it, by looking at the nature or things around them.

Keep letting them know how far away they are and that they doing really well in walking, and don’t worry if they have a meltdown as these will pass.

Children are just like us we get anxious over new experiences and changes, and children aren’t any different. As they start feeling their emotions they become more aware of what is happening around them.

I get anxious but I try to hide it, as I don’t want my fears to effect Henry in anyway and be afraid to go to school.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Teacher’s Gifts

I feel like a scrooge today because I saw parents today giving gifts to the teachers and I didn’t. I gave a Christmas card and contribute £5 to a group gift from the parents, but feel kind of stingy.

Should I buy his teacher a gift or teachers?

I thought you gave gifts at the end of the school year, or am I being totally naive?

The school has done a great job with Henry but is looked after by another teacher, so I would need to buy 5 different gifts.

I am all new to the school thing and just getting my son too school is always a mission.

I just found an article on the Metro talking about this various subject. See link below:

Should you buy your child’s teacher a Christmas gift?

So what do you do, do you buy your child’s teacher a gift?

Am I being stingy about not giving an extra gift even though I did contribute £5 to a group gift?

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Gift Ideas For Kids

Are you having trouble finding gifts for the children in your life?

Do they more less have everything?

Finding gifts for kids each Christmas can be tough especially if they have brothers and sisters who pass on their toys to their siblings. I remember as a kid I got a lot of gifts sets which I still love till this day, or it was cassette tape, a record or as got older a CD.

Check with their parents if the children have written a list and see if you can get something on the parents list, to save them getting it.

I have gone for journals this year for presents, clothes and story books, as you can’t go wrong with a book or a little journal notebook, especially if the children are into writing.

My son for his birthday received a dustcart toy, which when you press the button on top it moves forwards and back, and tips the bin up like a real dustcart and my son loves it. He also have a fire engine toy which he loves to play with too. 

Image is from: 
www.alza.co.uk

Choose a puzzle or a game that the family can play is always good and gets everyone together on Christmas day, and breaks the ice. As a kid growing up it was a tradition to play card games or a board game, it kind of breaks up the day.

The games my son loves to play with his Mr Men cards and playing matching  pairs, and helps them with their memory and observation skills.

Image from: https://www.orchardtoys.com/buy/penguin-pairs-mini-game_121.htm

Knowing what to buy each year can change as they begin to grow and get into new things each year. 

If you stuck on toys to buy why not buy an experience, like one year I bought my nieces an experience at Chessington World of Adventures, and they got to feed the giraffes there. 

I found this Video from YouTube which shows you the experience. 

https://www.chessington.com/explore/chessington-vip-adventures.aspx

So I hope this is helpful to you and will give you those last minute ideas. 

Many thanks for reading, 

Carrie X 

Dealing with Bumps and Scrapes

As a child I was always coming home with a plaster on my leg, cut my head open whilst playing with my brother who when playing football disclicated his arm, it happens accidents do happen and this week I got a phone call from my son’s school because he had split his head open.

It so happened I was on a course for the whole day, but my husband was off so I had to give him a call to go to the school, but to keep me posted to let me know how he was.

If they do come home with a cut leg, clean it up with a sterile wipe and cover with a plaster, if it is a broken arm, leg, cut on he head seek medical advice, as with head injuries could lead to other problems, such a dizziness and sickness.

Never leave them standing up, they should be seated or lying down. If unconcious, lay them into the recover position, don’t move then if unsure, and seek medical help straight away.

We were advised by the doctors to give Henry 24 hours before he returned to school and must not get his head wet, as the glue holding his cut together could come away and start bleeding again.

Try and stay as calm as possible even if the child is hysterical.  Get some support for yourself as it can be traumatic for everyone.

Make sure if it is done at nursery or at school an accident report is written and signed.

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X

Avoiding coughs and colds

This time of year at least someone I know will get a sticking cold, and usually Henry my son will get a cold as soon as the weather begins to change. 

So how can you avoid those horrible coughs and cold?

Teach your child to put their hand in front of their mouth, and make sure you have plenty of tissues to hand. Teach them to wash their hands regularly and give them a nice warm bath.

Keep them wrapped up and use Calpol if your child is not allergic but if they have a temperature and always have a thermometer to hand, as we keep us near by in the kitchen at all times just in case. 

Sometimes a cold is unavoidable and having a cold will  help make their anti bodies stronger and their immune system, but at the same time you want to make sure it doesn’t get any worse, and if you are concerned then do book an appointment with the doctor or speak to your health adviser. 

Make sure the child is well hydrated and check their diet. I am guilty of giving my son sugary food and I know it is bad, so I do make sure now that when he goes to school he has a piece of fruit to take with him aswell as his cup with water in it. 

If they are really bad then do avoid then going to school especially if they have a temperature as coughs and colds are contagious. 

Many thanks for reading, 

Carrie X 

When times are hard

I wrote a blog a while ago about Sometimes I find it a Struggle, and I still now there are times when it is so hard, that I just wish I could click my fingers and it all be right again. I can get my son’s uniform on without a fight, I will be at school without the long dreaded walk, and I will get a good report each day after school, but that wouldn’t be life. 

Life is about facing good and bad times and parenting most definitely has its ups and downs. No one tells you the truth and if someone tells me now that it gets easier, I ignore as I know that isn’t the truth, it just changes as your children grow.

Sorry to break the bad news, but it’s true, there are still hard times it comes I have found with parenting. 

Last week was my toughest so far as Henry refused to get dressed and put his uniform on, so I would raise my voice and have tantrum of my own, he wouldn’t go to the toilet when told I had to pick him up and take him there, and I literally had to pull him out of the house to get him to school, as he wanted to watch his tablet, and we had a few bad reports back after school too.

I think a lot of it was due to tiredness as when he is tired he will play up, so we are trying to get him to sleep for longer and not wake up so early, even though that’s a challenge in itself. 

Come Friday he was a lot better and has been this week so far. I feel nervous in saying that, as one thing I have learned from becoming a parent, is it can all change again tomorrow, and I will be having tantrums of my own again. 

I do try and stay calm but I slowly feel the heat rising and just want to scream, but staying calm as much as possible helps more than when I have a tantrum and when I begin to rant and rave. 

No one told me what a mission it was to get a child to school on time, especially as Henry wants to stop every minute or so to watch the cars, vans, lorries, buses and planes fly over, and see if we can spot any squirrels. I try to be patient and just walk without rushing, but when time starts to tick over I can’t help but worry about being late, even though we have so far made it time, it just takes forever to get there. 

The one thing I am pleased about is that he is happy to go to school once we are out and once we are there, he goes into his classroom without a fuss, and he ran in there yesterday before I could catch him, he was gone, but then when we (my husband and i) picked him up he wanted to run out of the school aswell, which I don’t blame him as I hated school when I was a kid and could’t wait to leave. 

If you are having a hard time then remember is doesn’t last forever and Henry like I say has been OK so far this week. Yes it can all change, but I also don’t want to wish his little life away either and yesterday he actually told me for the first time of what he did at school, which is a break through, as before when we asked the response we got was “Yeah” and nothing more. 

So lets see how today has gone, I feel nervous about picking him from school because I never know what the report back will be, but I will keep my fingers crossed and keep being persistent with teaching Henry to be good at school and hang on in there, as I hope like most things do they will work out in the end. 

Many thanks for reading, 

Carrie X 

My Son was reported for swearing at school

Yes it is true, and I do feel mortified that my son swore apparently during assembly, in front of the whole school. 

How do you stop your child from swearing?

This is a tough question, because my son being 5 years old now still doesn’t get that those words mean. He says them in the right context though, so we teach him to replace the words, with shoot or instead of Bloody, “oh my goodness”.

He began swearing back when he was at nursery and he had nipped it in the bud, but it seemed he had started again.

Both my husband and I are aware we have to watch our own language in case our son repeats them. 

A lot of it, is to do with attention and seeing what reaction he is going to get, so I try to ignore or replace the words so he knows what words are OK and which aren’t.  

Band the F word 

I have now band the F word from my lips, and have tried to get my husband to do the same, even though it still comes out whilst my husband is driving so I do have to keep reminding him that the F word shouldn’t be used, or I say “Stop swearing”.

It can be tricky but try not to bring too much attention to it, as if they see they get a reaction they will continue, well my son does, so we have to try and make him see that this word is fine, but we don’t say that word, as its a bad word. 

There hasn’t been any more reports of him swearing which I am relieved for, I hope I am not tempting fate, but so far he has stopped. 

Here is a video by Pappa Stig of how he stopped his son from swearing. 

So if you have any dilemmas such as your child swearing get in touch. I feel as a fellow parent we should support each other the best we can. 

Many thanks for reading,

Carrie X