Oh Baby! Magazine » Daddy Nickell

Creating Healthy Family Traditions

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 12:28:59 +0000

One of the most important things you can do to maintain a healthy family lifestyle is to create family traditions. What kind of healthy family traditions does your family consider important? Do you play a sport together, swim or make healthy dinners as a team? Now is a great time to start incorporating healthy activities into your own family. I guarantee your kids will be game as long as you’re doing it together. And as your children grow older, you can share the details about how your family traditions got started and why they’re important. They may even continue the traditions with their own families someday. Here are a few ideas you can incorporate into your own family:

1.Exercise as a family. Incorporate it into your family fun such as day trips to nature preserves with hiking, going swimming at a local pool or lake, biking together as a family on bike trails or within your neighborhood, or even a game of kickball in your own backyard.

2.Be good role models for kids for healthy eating and exercise. It’s hard to ask your kids to do something you’re not planning to do yourself. Provide the family with balanced meals and snacks and show them how important physical exercise is for the mind/body/spirit.

3.Introduce your kids (and you!) to new types of exercise and healthy activities. Attend a yoga class together, sign-up for a dodge ball league, sign up for a run that’s fun for even young kids like the Color Run, or try trail running as a family.

4.Make healthy food fun. We convinced our kids early on that each veggie or fruit gives you some sort of super power—like carrots for amazing eyesight, green beans make you run faster, and bananas give you big muscles to lift heavy things.

5.To get your kids to try new foods, play the dice game. They roll the dice and are required to eat as many bites as the number on the dice. This could be used for new foods or just foods on their plate.

6.Start a backyard garden with the family. It does double duty as it provides exercise and healthy foods. Kids love to dig in the dirt and are so proud of foods they’ve grown themselves. Once they are a part of the action, they are far more likely to find a love of new fruits and veggies.

7.Incorporate the family in meal planning and grocery shopping. My kids love nothing more than to push the kid cart around the super market and help me find foods we need to complete our meal plans. We take a few minutes each week to put together the weekly meal plan and when they provide input it’s more exciting for them.

8.Cook meals together whenever possible. Kids love to help in the kitchen from stirring, to chopping up lettuce for salads and buttering bread. Kids take pride in helping out and will be more inclined to eat what they’ve helped prepare.

Good luck!

Daddy Nickell

Parenting Expert and father of 7, Robert Nickell (aka Daddy Nickell) offers his “5 cents” worth of advice to expectant and new parents. Daddy Nickell is the founder of Daddy & Co., delivery room duds and daddy gifts and apparel for every stage of fatherhood, and the Daily Daddy Blog. He is also the creator and producer of “My Life as a Dad,” the groundbreaking new web series that showcases celebrity fathers offering their personal experiences and parenting tips.

5 Tips to Potty Train Your Child

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 12:26:38 +0000

For most parents, potty training is a daunting task (whether it’s kid #1 or #7, like me). We stress, bribe, beg and pray it goes quick and easy. But the fact of the matter is it’s different for each child and there’s not one prescription for perfect potty training. There are, however, tried and true tips that you can put into action to help the process along. Here are a few tips that have worked great for our family:

Step one—Wait for your child to show signs of readiness, Step two – role model, yes that means letting them watch you in the bathroom, and tell them about the process, Step three – practice with them, have the sit on the potty for 1 to 1.5 minutes around the time they should have to eliminate waste, Step four – use positive reinforcement like praise when they make potty in the toilet. Keep in mind accidents will happen. Kids often have accidents because they are busy and forget or don’t yet realize how long they can hold it. When this happens, have them change themselves and put their clothes in the laundry. Don’t get upset with them when it happens continue to be encouraging of their progress. Be prepared for accidents by bringing extra clothes to daycare and when running errands.
Be Patient with the Process—One of the challenges of potty training is that as parents are we want to get through it and be done with the process. One of the mental hurdles we need to get through is allowing the process to work at your child’s pace. Using the Potty Watch can help remind kids to go sit and the potty. That takes the onus off the parent help kids take responsibility for making to the toilet on time. The watch plays a fun tune to help them get excited about the process. You can change the increments as the child’s success rate goes up.
Give Lots of Praise—One of the best ways to help kids be successful with potty training is to use hugs, tickles, praise and positive statements for rewards. A chart to track progress is a great visual to see how they are getting better at using the toilet. If you have a resistant child, use other means of rewards to get them motivated.
Learning to Toilet Train is a Process—Kids need to be able to physically control their body. They need to show signs of readiness emotionally. They need to cognitively be aware of expectations about using the toilet. Step one – Look for signs of readiness, Step two – Explain the process and expectations, Step three – Take the child to the store to pick out big boy underpants or big girl panties, Step four – allow the child to run around naked at home to ease in getting on the potty when they have to go, Step five – praise them for successes.
Toilet Training Should be Fun—Use books and videos to reinforce the idea of going potty on the toilet. Have multiple potty chairs/toilets available. Kids can’t hold it for long periods of time as they are learning to control sensations. Rather than ask if they need to go potty, tell them it’s time to go and sit them on the potty at various time. Watch for behaviors like fidgeting or crossing their legs. Help them to recognize what they are feeling to help increase their success rate. Praise them for their progress. Making a big deal about making potty in the toilet reinforces their desire to do well.

Good luck and happy parenting!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

Tips to Handle Sibling Squabbles

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 09 Oct 2014 15:18:41 +0000

As difficult as it is as a parent to listen to your kids squabble, it is a necessary learning tool. When kids interact with parents and other adults, they learn about authority and respect. When they interact with their siblings they are honing skills that will help them resolve conflicts, deal with differing opinions, compromise and negotiate as well as learning how to empathize. This stage will pass and they will eventually become better friends and help protect each other.

Resolving an argument is an essential life skill that kids need to master. If possible, avoid stepping in to provide a solution. Coach them through the process by suggesting they look at their sibling’s perspective surrounding the situation. Offer ways to help clarify the point of contention so keep them focused on the real issue. Help them find creative ways to compromise and come to a win/win solution. When these instances arise, it might help to focus on these 6 steps to problem solving:

1. Identify the problem. It is essential to be able to verbalize the problem clearly before it can be solved. For instance: “You use my things without asking.”

2. Why is it a problem? Have your child identify why it is upsetting. For instance: “When you wear my sweater without asking, when I want to wear it I can’t find it.”

3. Brainstorm possible solutions. Make a list of potential solutions, allow the list to include sensible as well as non-sensible options. Don’t judge their ideas, leave that for later discussion. Gather a list of at least ways to resolve the issue.

4. Evaluate the possible solutions. Discuss the positive and negative outcomes of each of the potential ways to resolve the problem. Make a list of the pros and cons of each idea to see which idea has the most merit. Rank the results on a scale of 1 to 10 to help them identify the best scenario for finding compromise.

5. Put the solution into action. The first attempt to resolve the issue might not always work out. Give it some time to work and make adjustments as needed to keep the peace.

6. Evaluate the outcome. Evaluate what is working well and what needs to be adjusted to prevent the problem from being a regular occurrence.

As kids grow into their teen years privacy and independence become key issues that set them off. Creating healthy boundaries can help keep the fighting at bay. Most preteens and teens squabbles can be boiled down to two distinct categories: personal domain infractions and fairness issues. This could include borrowing things without permission; copy catting with the older sibling does, controlling what to watch on television or who gets to sit in the front seat of the car.

Good luck and happy parenting!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

How to Successfully Co-Parent

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 02 Oct 2014 12:23:39 +0000

Divorce is hard enough to go through as an adult, however, when kids are involved the struggle can reach a whole new level. I’ve compiled a list of do’s and don’ts that will make co-parenting a little bit easier, so that you and your ex are able to focus on being the best pso Pandora Beads Australiaarents you can be.

Do: Communicate with your ex. As much as you likely don’t want to communicate with your ex after a divorce, you need to remember you both have a child together, and the communication will be beneficial to that child. Talk with your ex to determine what will work best for you. If something comes up, such as: your child gets sick, breaks a limb, has a fight at school, etc. while you’re not around, you’ll need to know so you can be the best parent you can be. You and your ex will need to establish a simple means of communication – be it a weekly text, email, or a phone call – so that both parents have a firm grasp of what’s going on with your child at any given time.

Don’t: Trash talk your ex. Trash talking might be tempting at times, but it’s not something you ever want to do in front of your child. Listening to you say terrible things about your ex could potentially damage your child’s relationship with the other parent, and that’s really not worth it. Learn to let go of your frustrations and focus on what’s really most important – your child’s health, happiness and well -being. With two caring parents nearby, whether married or divorced, a child will likely be able to achieve those things.

Do: Stay positive. It can be difficult to stay positive in the midst of a divorce and even after, but you should strive to stay positive for the sake of your child. Make positive statements about your ex in front of your child, and focus on building your child up by encouraging their strengths. Your child might experience anger and depression that has stemmed from the divorce, so you’ll need to be so positive that your mood rubs off on them.

Don’t: Force a child to choose sides. Do whatever it takes to keep your child out of a messy divorce. Don’t ask them to choose sides. Instead, create a fair schedule wherein your child will have the opportunity to spend time with both yourself and your ex. Forcdetection Cheap Pandora Australia Saleing a child to choose between Mom or Dad can be detrimental to your child. Remember that you’re a parent – first and foremost – and do whatever will be best for your child.

Do: Find consistency. Co-parenting works best when there’s consistency — consistency in schedule, rules and visitation. You’ll need to communicate with your ex in order to establish consistency in your child’s life. Having this consistency and routine will help your child feel more comfortable and at ease within the chaos of divorce.

When in doubt, remember that your child is more important than anything else, and try to be the best parent you can be.

Happy co-parenting!

Daddy Nickell

Disciplining: Thinking Outside the Box

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 12:37:39 +0000

As a parent I know that for every bit of fun and enjoyment to be had with Pandora Charms Australiand, there’s always the possibility of consequences and necessary discipline, too. It’s the parent’s responsibility to teach their children right from wrong, as well, as how to behave, how to treat others, etc. – I know, it’s a BIG job! With seven kids of my own ranging in age from 8 months to 27 years old, I’ve learned a thing or two about being creative when it comes to consequences and discipline.

Motivate Positively: First things first, you can try to steer your children in the right direction to avoid some unnecessary (and not-so-fun) consequences and disciplinary actions simply by motivating them positively with some sort of reward system. Sticker charts are great as are coin jars and other similar items. With this idea you’ll be able to discuss behaviors and expectations early-on, and your child will know exactly what they’ll need to do in order to earn a sticker or have a nickel deposited in their coin jar. Your children will behave while working towards a reward and at the same time learning how to be a kind and contributing member of the family.

Consequence Jar: Just as your children will be able to have a nickel added to their coin jar or a sticker to their sticker chart for behaving well, they might also have to draw a Popsicle stick from the consequence jar when they misbehave. Some ideas for this jar include: early bedtime, no television for a night, an extra chore, a timeout, etc. A substitute to the consequence jar is a consequence spinner (you can even purchase them online) wherein your child spins a wheel in order to determine their consequence instead of drawing a Popsicle stick from a jar. With this method, your child is essentially choosing his or her own consequence and you’ll be around for the follow through.

Let Them Decide: By bringing your child into the conversation and letting them help determine their consequence they’ll be able to fully contemplate the severity of their actions as well as brainstorm what kinds of consequences would be equivalent to those poor or negative actions and behaviors. Writing up a behavior contract, and having your child sign it once you decide upon a consequence you both find suitable is also a great activity and possibly a bit of a consequence in itself. After your child sits and thinks about what they did wrong, determines what their consequence will be and then writes the whole thing out to sign they’ll likely have a whole new outlook and certainly won’t be confused about what they did wrong in the first place.

Teaching your children how they’re expected to behave on a day-to-day basis is difficult, and chances are you’ll have to discipline your children for their actions a time or two before they figure things out.

Good luck and happy parenting!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

Parenting Expert and father of 7, Robert Nickell (aka Daddy Nickell) offers his “5 cents” worth of advice to expectant and new parents. Daddy Nickell is the founder of Daddy & Co., delivery room duds and daddy gifts and apparel for every stage of fatherhood, and tPandora Gold Beads s also the creator and producer of “My Life as a Dad,” the groundbreaking new web series that showcases celebrity fathers offering their personal experiences and parenting tips.

Tips to Build Self-Esteem in Kids

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 18 Sep 2014 12:40:39 +0000

A healthy self-esteem is the foundation to a lifetime of positive mental health and social happiness.How you feel about yourself affects how you behave and how you treat others. Kids who understand their own strengths and weaknesses and feel good about themselves seem to have an easier time handling conflict and resisting negative pressures. It’s our job as parents to help build our children’s self-esteem and make them feel good about themselves. Here are a few tips I’ve used over the years with my 7 kids:

Words of praise go a long way in building a child’s self-esteem.It is important to be honest in your praise as well as recognizing the effort the child made.Reward effort and completion of a task regardless of the outcome.State how proud you are for their willingness to try something new.You could say something like, “Even though you didn’t make the team, I’m proud of you for practicing and trying out.”

Help kids overcome disappointment with humor.Sometimes a skill level just isn’t there due to age or experience.Help them discover things they are good at and help them understand we all have different gifts and talents.We can still participate in activities that we’re not especially good at just because we enjoy them.For example, you could share with them that you love to sing even though you can’t carry a tune.

Be a positive role model for your kids.Nurture your own self-esteem in front of them by sharing positive self-talk for them to mimic. Kids will pick up on your habits and attitudes so be careful to portray a realistic representation of your attitudes and abilities.

Identify any unhealthy or inaccurate self-perceptions your kids have about themselves and correct them.Kids can put too much pressure on themselves to be perfect or to look a certain way. Help them recognize that diversity is what makes them interesting and unique.Focus on things they do well overall, but address something specific they could improve. For instance, you could say, you are an excellent student in school, but you could spend more time working on grammar.

Be generous with your love and affection.Send notes in your kid’s lunch box that share something special like “I think you’re terrific!”Tell them you’re proud of them when they try something new or they success at something they previously fail at.Help them demonstrate kindness towards others.

Be honest in your praise and help your kids be humble. An over inflated sense of self can cause kids to think they are better than others, or put others down to feel better about themselves. Point all we all have strengths and weaknesses and we all do things better than others and we all do things less well than others.We all have a role to play on a team and each member of the team is equally important.

Acknowledge kids’ feelings and validate how they feel. When they are young, help them identify words to express how they feel so their frustrations can be addressed and worked through. Empower them with choices on how to fix the problem so it doesn’t persist.

Create a safe home environment free of yelling and abuse. Kids who grow up in abusive environments are more likely to have low self-esteem.Kids who witness their parents fighting may feel like they can’t control their environment and may succumb to depression or feel helpless and afraid.

Allow your kids to participate on teams where cooperation rather than completion is the goal. For example, having an older child mentor a younger child in reading or math. Volunteering as a family in your local community is also beneficial for helping kids learn to contribute and make a positive impact in their world.

Help kids take pride in what they are doing not matter how big or how small. Teach them that a job done well is important whether it’s making their bed or doing math homework.Teach them their effort is an extension of their character and being known for doing a good job is important.

Good Luck!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

Don’t Let the Flu Catch You

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 11 Sep 2014 12:45:12 +0000

We’re nearing that time of year again—the dreaded cold and flu season. This year you can be prepared to take control and keep illness at bay by following these easy tips. With seven children of my own I know the flu, or even a cold, can wreak havoc on a child’s immune system, and if you have multiple children in your home then you know full well how quickly illness can spread from one child to another. Follow these easy tips to help your family stay happy and healthy:

1. Stay Clean: The single, most important thing you can do is wash your hands as often as possible, with soap and hot water. If you do not have soap and hot water available then keep a tube of hand sanitizer in your Daddy Diaper Pack, glove box, or briefcase. As well, require your children to wash their hands a lot. Furthermore, if you have visitors in your home ask them to wash their hands immediately upon entering – prior to interacting with your children. Germs are easily spread, and they are much more prevalent and dangerous than you may think. If your kids are older teach them to keep their hands away from eyes, mouths, and faces in order to lessen the chance of spreading germs. Additionally it’s very important to keep household surfaces clean by washing them regularly with a disinfectant spray.

2. Strive for Health: All parents strive to keep their children healthy, but during cold and flu season it’s more important than ever to focus on health! Remember to eat well, drink fluids, get plenty of rest and to exercise, too! In our house we rely on the crockpot during the winter months; crockpot meals are easy to prepare, easy to clean up and you can make them very nutritious with plenty of vegetables. So warm your bellies with a hearty meal and head to bed early – and don’t forget to exercise!

3. Quarantine (if you must): Okay, so this may be overkill. You don’t really need to quarantine your healthy child, but what I do suggest is to refrain from sharing food and drink with family and friends and to stay away from other children who are showing signs of illness. Washing toys that are handled often and by multiple children is very important. And make sure to also wash anything your child takes back and forth between school and home. Don’t be afraid to ask a parent with a sniffling or coughing child if they’re ill; you’re just doing your best as a parent to keep your own child healthy.
Do your best to take all of these protective measures and hopefully you are able to keep your child and family sickness-free this cold and flu season. Good luck!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

Dads—Be There

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 04 Sep 2014 13:24:48 +0000

You fathered a child, and now it’s time to step up and be a present, active participant in that child’s life. ralph lauren big pony polo play an important role in raising a child, and there are many reasons why dads should be active, including:

Love: The love shared between a child and a parent is special. Active dads have the opportunity to not only show their children love, but to help teach them how to build and nurture loving relationships. The loving bond a dad builds with his child can begin when a child is born. An active dad will change diapers, swaddle baby, talk to baby, make eye contact with baby and more in order to begin building a bond from day one. When it ralph lauren polo outlet comes right down to it, love comes from the building of trust and bonds, and love is one of the strongest emotions we feel. Being both physical and emotional, it’s incredibly important to show your child love as often as possible. Hugs and kisses are great, but you can also tell them you love them and miss them and can’t wait to get back home to them when you’re away.
Role Model: Of course children need positive and healthy role models in their lives, and an active dad can provide a child with just that. A role model helps a child learn about goals, respect, appreciation, love and more. An active dad will teach their child about positive relationships by building an excellent relationship with the child’s mom. An active dad will always lead by example, because they know their children are watching and learning from every move they make. An active dad will strive to be the best role model he can be.
Experience: An active dad allows for extra or more active experiences. Dads who are active in their child’s lives encourage more activity, adventure and learning opportunities. Active dads offer their children different experiences such as learning to fish. Maybe fishing is something mom doesn’t enjoy, so without dad around a child may never experience fishing. As a dad encourages a new experience such as trying a new sport they’ll develop ongoing opportunities to be involved with things like: practice, coaching, games, travel, etc. The more experiences a child can have the more well-rounded and worldly they’ll grow up to be.

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Being an active dad is easier than you might think. There are lots of ways to get involved and it’s of the utmost importance that you do! Have fun with it and do your very best.

Happy parenting!
Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

Back-to-School Time Saving Strategies

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 21 Aug 2014 12:23:54 +0000

With seven kids of my own, I’ve had my fair share of school morning mayhem over the years. Through trial and error, it also taught me what works and what doesn’t work to get everyone dressed, fed breakfast and out the door on time. School mornings don’t have to be stressful with a few simple measures in place to keep your sanity intact. Below I’ve shared a few tried-and-true time saving ways to help your kids stay on schedule:

1. Get breakfast staples that the kids can make themselves. Make sure to stock up the pantry with cereals and oatmeal breakfast bars, fill the refrigerator with yogurt and berries, and have half cartons of milk and juice (half cartons are easier for the kids to use). Make sure the kiddos also know how to rinse their plates and put them away in the dishwasher to make things less stressful for you!

2. Make sure the kids shower in the evening so the mornings are less hectic. However, if the kids like showering in the morning, set up a shower/eating schedule where while one child showers, the other one eats, and vice versa.

3. Set up a morning schedule as soon as your kids can tell time. They might wake up and get out of bed when the alarm goes off, but that doesn’t help much if eating breakfast takes them 45 minutes and the shower another 30. Set time limits for every activity, and provide some rewards initially to motivate them to stick to the schedule. Soon enough, it will be their daily morning routine.

4. Make television and other screens off-limits in the morning. As it’s easy for kids to lose track of time when on their iPad or while watching a show, just make the am a ‘no screen’ time for everyone. Or allow screen time if they get ready and have breakfast before it’s time to leave for school. This might motivate them to move faster in the morning.

5. If you can do a school preparation task the night before, do it! For example, spend time each night helping the kids pick out their next day’s outfit, getting their backpacks ready and at the door, packing lunches and putting them in the fridge (or have the kids pack their own lunches, as they can definitely do that themselves once they are in elementary school), and sign any permission slips. This can save you much-needed minutes and help everything remain calm in the morning!

6. Choose comforters for the kids’ bedding. Your kids will be more likely to make their beds in the morning if they have comforters rather than sheets and blankets, as the process is much quicker and simper.

7. Make sure the kids are self-sufficient as early as possible! If they’re not relying on you to get themselves ready, it will make things much easier on the parent. It will be a big confidence booster for them!

Good luck & happy back-to-school season!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell

It’s Back to School Time

Daddy Nickell — Thu, 14 Aug 2014 12:17:29 +0000

It’s that time of year again! Summer is coming to an end, and the first day of school seems closer than ever. I’m here to let you know there are things you can do now, prior to the first day of school, that’ll help your child be more prepared for the new school year.

Routine: Summer fun can lead to hectic schedules, but it’s important to ease kids back into a more stable routine prior to the first day of school. A week or two before school starts begin waking your child up early, having breakfast and getting ready for the day together. In the evening stick to a schedule of eating dinner, taking a bath, reading a book and going to bed early. When it’s time to head back to school your child will be well rested and ready to fall back into the school year routine.

Educational Activities: Make time for educational activities in order to help your child get back into the swing of things. These activities don’t have to be boring. Head to the museum; count the number of dogs you see on your way to the park; make sure to read to your child every day. Educational summer day camps are an excellent support since they help with routine and will engage your child’s brain.

Get Organized: Don’t leave everything for the last minute – start getting organized now! Sort through your child’s closet to determine what back-to-school clothes they need for the year. Ask for a list of desired school supplies and purchase those now, too! Create a meal plan in advance to help your kitchen run with ease. Work with your child to create a homework station where your child can comfortably sit and work on homework afterschool each day.

Communicate: As always, it’s important to talk to your child. Communicating will allow your child to feel more prepared for what’s ahead. Give them time to ask questions, share concerns and more. Talk to your child about what to expect: what their average school day will look like, what their teacher’s name is, where they’ll go for lunch, etc. The more information you share with your child now the more ready they will be for the first day of school.

Summer is coming to an end. Start preparing for the first day of school now!

Happy parenting!

Sincerely,

Daddy Nickell