Long ago (October 28, 2010 to be exact) I posted about Starfall.com and all the amazing possibilities for preschool learning that it offers. Did I mention it’s free? Well, I tell you all about that and much more in the original post.

I just wanted to give all of you a super quick update to say that Starfall.com now has an App for iPhone and iPad. I was so excited to find this to help my littlest guys with the letters they are still struggling with a bit.

Be sure to check it out. Although it’s not free, I definitely still recommend it. It’s only $2.99 and will be an educational tool that you will use frequently and is used for far more than simple letter sounds and recognition. As seen in the second image on this post, it’s used to help kids learn sight words and more.

Although I can remember plenty of times when recess was not my favorite thing (I disliked rain, sometimes the games weren’t fair, etc.), the break from the monotony of classroom activities was always so refreshing.

My twins (5th and 6th sons) just started Kindergarten. Their first day of school was so exciting they stumbled all over themselves trying to tell me all the amazing things they did that day.

The funny thing is, when I asked them what they loved most about school…their reply, in stereo no less, was RECESS!

No amount of explaining that recess isn’t a subject would get through to them, they were determined that it was in fact, the most important part of the day. In so many ways I just can’t blame them.

The appeal of the swings, slides and bright equipment is nearly overwhelming to a little one. What many fail to realize I think is the amazing amount of creative and imaginative play that can take place during recess, as well as social interaction.

Sure, there can be problems, but I think that’s just all part of the learning process. It’s in those mistakes we learn.  So, I stopped trying to explain away recess as a truly valuable part of my children’s education and embrace the stories they tell about their favorite part of the day.

Did you know that over the past twenty years, children have lost an average of 8 hours of recess a week. Danimals Rally for Recessis a national initiative designed to create healthy competition, pitting school against school.

Go to Danimals Rally for Recess for a chance to win $20,000 for your Elementary school playground. Plus each day Danimals is giving recess-related prizes to keep kids healthy and active.

Share your Recess memories below and go to Rally for Recess for more information on how your school can win!

I have partnered with Dannon/Danimals to help promote the “Rally for Recess” campaign. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program, which includes writing about the promotion and product, and hosting a giveaway where the prize has been provided by Dannon/Danimals. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments. Contest Rules.

One year ago, all 6 of my sons had serious respiratory illnesses. The severity of their illnesses and duration of recovery was phenomenally challenging. Needless to say, since then my way of approaching my family’s health has changed drastically.

In the midst of it all, a simple yet astounding fact hit me like a ton of bricks…. in the process of everyday cooking and caring for our family, we as moms are in fact, nutritionists for anyone we care for. This became a blazing reality quite possibly because of the extent of the illnesses and all the meds that were required to get my children well.

A Drastic Realization

I often found myself thinking, “there has to be a better way”. There has to be a way to be more proactive in keeping my kids healthy not just treating them when their health deteriorates to the point that they need serious medical intervention.

As I began the turn toward finding ways to cook and nourish my family in a healthier way I began a journey in natural nutrition. As I wade knee deep through so much amazing information, I felt compelled to share a bit of what I learn with all of you.

Yes, I’m just a mom. No, I’m not a medical professional. No, this information is never to replace the advice and care of your regular physician. Yes, you should do your research and find out ways to learn and grow in your own knowledge in nourishing and growing your family.

A S.A.D. Nation

The fact of the matter is that the Standard American Diet (S.A.D.) keeps us full but also keeps us very malnourished. Honestly, it absolutely never occurred to me that in the midst of having plenty my family is still struggling with deficiencies in so many areas.

Let me make it clear right off the bat, I personally do not believe that the recommended daily allowances or many of the suggestions out there about how we eat from the government are even close to home base for most of us. The fact that most of us don’t even think to question whether or not what they recommend is good for us or even sufficient for us is actually a bit disturbing.

As a mom, in every other area of raising my family, caring for them (and myself and hubby), I have to mold and change and flex with the needs of each of my children. Yet, since it’s all laid right out there for us by the government and various agencies, I never questioned that what I was eating was not only just empty calories, but was actually creating deficiencies that affect my everyday life more than I ever could have thought possible.

Has She Lost Her Mind?

If this sounds a little extreme to you, I encourage you to really do a little research on body function, malnutrition and vitamin/mineral deficiencies and the results thereof. You may still believe that I’m off my rocker, and that’s ok, but there’s also a good possibility that your eyes will be opened and you may find yourself thinking twice about the breakfast cereal you pull out of the cupboard in the morning.

My life changing realization went deeper than the long, horrible illnesses all of my boys endured a year ago.

It was an absolute show-stopping discovery that my body cannot and does not absorb vitamin B12. This was a long process to figuring out, but while using it to eliminate one problem (Angioedema – hive-like swelling under the skin), it actually worked for my issues with depression. Not saying this is a common side-effect, but it was too drastic to ignore. I chose to embrace it, learn from it and move forward to see what else I could discover.

My intent here is not to tell you that you’re doing it all wrong!!! Please don’t think that, I still serve sub-par meals to my family, we have not yet made the full switch to whole foods, but I am educating myself more and more each day and making one single change at a time.

The Gradual Change

This brings us to a huge point. With going green in your home I have always made the suggestion that you choose one thing at a time. This could be one thing per month, one thing per year even, but one thing that you are committed to changing. With nourishing your family I will recommend the same.

I’ll be posting ideas, and likely even challenges that I invite you to join me in. These will be intended to help you to actively make a difference in your family’s every day health!

But I’m Just a Mom

No, you’re never ever just a mom! I know all you do, the parts of yourself that you have so completely given to your family and even your friends. Not all moms have time or the desire even to study to become a nutritionist, though that seems to be exactly what all of us need.

I’ll be sharing Homemade Healthy articles from time to time here at A Frog In My Soup. These are intended to simply inform you. Basic facts about great foods and nutrients and bits of information that I have learned and feel compelled to share.

This information is in NO way intended to be taken as medical advice or replace the instructions of any physician.

So next week, our first Homemade Healthy article will be published. I truly hope you find these articles and information helpful in your everyday routine!

Today was officially the first day of school (for all but CJ who starts tomorrow) and wow the excitement was at insane levels this morning. All of the kiddos (again, except for CJ) were up by 5am…yes, I am sure right about now you are totally wishing you were me (LOL). The ruckus was undeniably excitement and lots of it.

As I was taking photos of the younger boys this morning, celebrating the Twinkies’ first day of kindergarten and the big world of school, I realized that a lot of the tricks to taking good back to school photos boil down to just a few simple tecniques.

Honestly, taking a lot of pictures (mostly un-posed) is the best way to guarantee you’ll end up with at least a few amazing photos of each child.

Where to take the photo.

I like to really focus on taking a few pictures of each child individually – in front of a tree, nice bush, a bus, nice fence, etc. Pick something that’s appealing with good light and of course somewhere your child isn’t likely to end up messy.

What about the bus?

Getting pictures of them boarding the bus can be a lot more challenging. Not wanting to slow down theprocess, sometimes just calling out their name with the camera ready to snap the picture is enough, other times (like my experience today), it’s a photo you may have to resign yourself to not having that year. Of course, the beauty of it is there are plenty more days of boarding the bus ahead so who says you’re limited to taking a photo of only the first day?

Editing

Where your photos can really shine, or take on a very unique appeal is in the editing. There’s some great photo editing tools out there, one of my all-time faves is definitely Adobe’s Photoshop Elements. It’s affordable, fairly simple to use and creates amazing photo pages. That said though, although it is my basic-editing and scrapbook-page-creating software of choice, I use something entirely different for the really nice photo effects.

Picnik.com has been my go-to place for sooooo much to do with photos, especially the ones you see here on AFIMS. I do subscribe to their annual premium plan (and highly recommend it), but there are plenty of free options as well to keep you happy with the simpler editing projects.

Here’s a perfect example featuring Monkey, who bonked his forehead on his brother’s bike last weekend (just in time for school of course). And while some people would be perfectly happy having that lovely scratch show, I personally wanted it to be about the first day of school, and not about the bonked forehead (because trust me, there are still plenty of those to go around lol).

I realize this is a lot more editing than most people will even want to do, but the possibilities are so fun! Here’s a few more (click on each thumbnail to see the full image) and until next time..happy snapping .

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a coupon for everything you buy and anywhere you shop? Well, although that isn’t entirely possible, one of the best sources for online coupons and savings is definitely Savings.com.

Quite possibly one of the things I love about this site most is their Savings Pledge. The pledge involves committing to take control of spending to reach a goal. Learn all about it here.

There’s so much more to Savings.com than the pledge though. Finding unbelievable deals to use when shopping is really the backbone of the site.

This week for instance the Deal of the Week is a coupon that saves you $30 on a $90 purchase at The Limited. Sure, not everyone can use this, but it’s a great example of the huge savings that you can really amass when you check with Savings.com before you shop!!!

With all the cash going out with back to school shopping what better way to stretch every precious dollar we have? Some deals are definitely bigger than others, but the idea here is to add Savings.com to your list of stops before you go shopping online! Enjoy the savings.

This year all 6 of my sons are going to be in school. While this may not seem particularly monumental to anyone but me, it also brings a mile-long list of supplies that need to be purchased for the collective masses.

Money is tight, my dollar doesn’t go nearly as far as it used to and I need to be careful that back-to-school doesn’t break the bank. I know I’m not alone, so here’s a few suggestions to keep back to school more affordable, and maybe even a lot less stressful.

Plan ahead – who says back-to-school shopping has to be done during summer break?

I know it’s a little late for the new school year, but the biggest tip I have for the cheapest back-to-school prices, is to shop year round. Every time I go to the store, I can be found scouring ads and shopping the clearance rack at the stores I frequent. Often I can find name brand clothing even for 70% off or more!

Just get to know your stores, the locations of their clearance racks and how often they have big sales.  Of course, since some of my boys are growing like weeds (literally), this is rather necessary anyway or their pants start fitting them like capris (trust me, this is not the look a boy is going for).

Keep a List – we even have a standard clothing “supply” list around here.

I’d rather not have a child with 10 t-shirts and 1 pair of jeans in their drawers, and with a lot of kids it’s easy to mix up who has what. So, keeping a checklist for each child to ensure they have the right amount of all the necessaries is key around here.

Be Flexible – sometimes the best deals are where you least expect them.

I was recently doing a search for coupons and sales for back to school online and was surprised when it suddenly occurred to me that using the annual local Entertainment book is an incredibly simple option. If you don’t have an Entertainment book, look on craigslist or sites like that for the current edition, or simply put it on your list for next year (shop for it several months after it’s released to get it for $10 or less).

That’s just one example of thinking “outside the box” for a super cheap back-to-school, imagine the possibilities.

We want to know how you’re saving this year!!!

Share your back to school money saving advice below for a chance to win a $500 Back to School Shopping Spree from BlogFrog! 

Want to exchange more tips and ideas with other moms? We’d love to hear your solutions (or questions even) for healthy snacks, school supplies and saving money!  Visit the Horizon® Healthily Families Back to School Community!  

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Horizon.  The opinions expressed by me do not necessarily reflect the view of the Horizon Organic brand. 

As we talk about Back-to-school we simply have to mention lunches. This year I’m going to do a little more than mention it though as we delve into great lunch ideas and in an effort to go completely green in the lunch department, Bento will be key. From supplies to recipes and great sites for you to use as resources, we’re going green and Bento all over the place!!!

Care to take the plunge with me? Great!! Today, we’re going to look at the basic supplies and where to buy them.

Going Bento is not as challenging as it may seem, or as expensive. I admit I was so lost at first. I loved the idea of doing bento type lunches for my family, but I was struggling with the “hows” and “where-to-buys”.

In keeping with my standard back-to-school shopping advice, you have to “think outside the box” more than ever here. From where to shop for Bento boxes and supplies to how to creatively package daily lunches (without going crazy). While you’re thinking outside the box however, keep in mind that there’s a lot of products out there and you’ll be building your Bento supply box over time.

Start with the Box!

Finding the perfect box may seem daunting, but there’s simple solutions for those who are just starting. Here’s some ideas.

EasyLunchboxes is probably the simplest of them all! Last fall they sent me a set of their fantastic lunchboxes and it was an amazing introduction for me into the world of Bento. Alas, my life was so crazy at the time I wasn’t able to fully appreciate it or share it with all of you until now, but I’m so excited to do so.

Since these boxes are already compartmentalized you will have no problem building a cute lunch without needing an excess of supplies. Just purchase a set of these sturdy, durable boxes (comes in a set of 4 for around $14.99 – WOW!) and a couple little bento goodies and you’re totally ready to send up to four kids back to school for under $20.

Local Finds

Search for local shops (specialty, Walmart, Target, etc) and even look at garage sales, Craigslist, etc for bento options. If you can buy locally (and if their prices aren’t through the roof), you won’t have to worry about shipping costs and of course there’s the whole supporting local businesses idea to feel good about.

More Box Shopping

Feel like you want to take the plunge even deeper into bento? Check out AllThingsForSale.com a surprising little online Bento store that has simply amazing prices!

There’s a lot of creative solutions there and while it may seem daunting, I hope to offer a little more information on these over the next few months as we try some out ourselves.

Though there are tons and tons of places to shop here’s just a couple links to keep you going:

• Amazon.com - offers very cute bento boxes and accessories at definitely affordable prices!
• Ebay – honestly a fabulous place to shop for bento just use the normal cautions (ie: beware of sellers that gouge you for shipping or have low feedback ratings).
• The Container Store – another surprising find with amazing options!
• http://megasuperbento.ecrater.com/ - haven’t shopped here but got the suggestion from a few bento sites.
• Bento&Co – admittedly not the cheapest place to shop for bento but definitely unique.

Accessories

Wondering where on earth to begin? Well it all depends on how in depth you want to go right off the bat, but frankly I recommend keeping it simple. Although all accessories are truly optional, I do recommend that you at least start with silicone cupcake cups (can be found literally at any store that sells cooking supplies or online) or food separators of some sort (usually purchased in bento specialty shops or online at the stores I mentioned). Most can be purchased at any of the above mentioned ideas/links.

• Bag – if you buy boxes that don’t have one you may want to find something that fits the containers and a thermos or drink container for portability.
• Picks – the ultimate accessory for cuteness and keeping small food (grapes, olives, etc) where you want it to be in the box.
• Sandwich Cutters – not all boxes fit standard sized bread and let’s face it kids love shaped sandwiches!!! This is an affordable, simple and fun option to have.

More on Lunch

Be on the lookout for future posts that expand on ideas, suggestions, accessories and more all to do with Bento! Also, I plan to feature some fun lunch ideas over the next few weeks that are (of course!) simple simple simple!!!

Old Navy is having their $10 jeans sale that only lasts for three days (August 5 – August 7) so you’ll have to hurry to take advantage of this one.

They also have tons of other back to school clothes on sale for a little longer but I wanted to share this great price with all of you while it’s still good!

Alright my friends we have returned from the land of Vacationing!!! I definitely have some new tips and thoughts about big family vacationing to share with all of you, but throughout our entire trip I simply could not seem to completely eradicate the thoughts of how close we are to back-to-school.

I kept finding my brain drifting to school supply lists and clothes and even lunches. Seriously!? It couldn’t wait just a few more days until we returned home from vacation??? Well, apparently not.

Alas, this is just the way it is for a mom who this year has all 6 boys in school for the first time ever. Granted, they will be in three different schools with 4 in elementary, one in Jr. High and a Sophomore in High School, but that just adds to the list.

So, although I refused to post a true back-to-school article for you all until I officially return from vacation, it was always there and I hope to have a great bunch of ideas to share with all of you this year!

Starting today, don’t be surprised if you find little posts announcing different sales I find, but I would also love to know what you are finding as well so please always feel free to leave a comment with a link to your posts or with the information directly if you’d like. You can even drop me a note using my contact form if you’d like to pass on any deals and tips you have!

Since I am a parent of a child who has had severe difficulties fitting into the public education system I have a few rather strong feelings on this matter and today I’m speaking out from my perspective.

Please note: This post is solely from what I have learned as a parent of a child who has learning disabilities but who was labeled by teachers at a young age as having ADD and them not wanting to investigate further but instead immediately wanted him on meds. So I will talk quite a bit about ADD/ADHD and learning disabilities… if you already know your child’s diagnosis, this post isn’t for you.

There are two things I want to say right off the bat that all parents MUST understand about this subject:

Not all children with focus or behavioral issues in the classroom have ADD/ADHD… in fact only some of them do, and typically many of the children who are exhibiting ADD/ADHD tendencies have something else going on that’s triggering it.

You are always the parent and ultimately YOU are responsible for the choices made in their education… do NOT let them take this away from you.

If you get no further in reading this, please take those two facts into consideration when thinking of your child who’s struggling in school.

Now, I’m going to say right here and now that I am directly speaking to parents of children who are struggling in school and feeling the weight of pressure from teachers and other school authorities who are often demanding the child be tested and medicated. I am not saying that all school authorities are this way, nor am I saying there are not a few true cases of ADD/ADHD, but this post is definitely going to challenge some of you.

Labeled

In my own experience, from 3rd grade on my son was labeled. He was a very well behaved young man, but would often be found daydreaming during class and his teachers decided that this lack of focus purely meant that he needed to be tested for ADD/ADHD.

Being his parents and knowing that this truly isn’t an issue, we were stunned, appalled, confused and frustrated. After all, we had shown up to this meeting as a simple parent/teacher conference and ended up entering a room filled with 6 people at a table all ready to state a case before very unsuspecting parents.

Unfortunately this is not the last time that we were met with this situation, it happened again in 7th grade where yet again we were caught off guard, only this time our son was in presence as each teacher got to take a turn raking him over the coals and telling him how horribly he was doing. This my friends is completely and totally unacceptable and is NEVER to happen!!!

The Unexpected Conference

This type of conference is unnerving and totally unexpected usually, and the teacher is definitely in the wrong in this situation as it is not appropriate for them not to let you know in advance that there are concerns and that more people will be attending the meeting. If you find yourself overwhelmed you definitely have the right to address them all and state your surprise and even to stop the meeting and reschedule it if you would like.

If your child happens to be there when you enter a conference like this, I strongly advise that you completely stop the meeting for at least long enough to take your child out of the room (or if they are too young to sit outside the door, definitely stop the meeting completely and reschedule it). This is not the appropriate place for a child to be, as typically they are discussed like a common item, not as an individual.

Handling Demands

Frequently you’ll be told that your child is showing signs of being ADD/ADHD to different levels. It seems that if a child does not perfectly fit into the school’s educational box it is immediately assumed that there is something wrong with them. No attempt is made to work with the parents to see if this has come up in the past, nope, these employees who often have only had your child for a short time apparently are able to see what you and your child’s doctor cannot after years of knowing them.

That said, what exactly do they expect you to do if you do find out your child is ADD/ADHD? Medicate them immediately. That, my friend, would be such an unfortunate conclusion to the situation.

Keep in mind that anyone can be diagnosed with ADD or ADHD, especially children so doing a little research could be of so much benefit to you all.

Making the Choice

You are the parent and you know your child. No one can usurp that authority or even call it into question (though often they will imply they can). There are so very many possibilities for what’s going on with each individual child. But that’s just it, they are an individual and MUST be treated and diagnosed as such.

Having them tested for true learning disabilities and things that contribute to learning difficulty… memory, processing, perception, dyslexia, vision, allergies, and so many more. There are so many things that contribute that many do not take into account. Certain allergies or even reactions to medications, for instance often manifest themselves as ADHD, sometimes even look like severe ADHD but still truly is only the allergy.

My son’s “focus” issues came from not understanding what the teachers were teaching him and it was his way of dealing with the humiliation of feeling stupid. It was a warning sign that he wasn’t able to grasp the way they were teaching him, instead the teachers all wanted us to mask that sign by giving him medication to make him focus (something that to this day makes no sense to me at all).

But How do I Know?

By now, many of you may think I have no use for public education, or for teachers, but that is absolutely not the case. Through the years our children have had many amazing teachers and we have cherished those and thank them repeatedly for their ability to see through the “problems” and find creative solutions.

What I do find myself repeatedly having to help other parents with is the reclaiming of their authority over the decisions made in respect to their children. No educational system or teacher will ever know your child as well as you do.

Most parents out there want the very best for their child, know their child very well by the time they start school and that cannot and should not be taken away from you at any point in their education. As you are the one that knows your child best, it is your knowledge and decisions that should be deferred to in the midst of any problem that may arise.

Facing problems… behavioral, learning or otherwise… isn’t always the most fun part of parenting, but taking control of the situation, facing the issue head on to come to an informed decision is that best thing you could ever do for your child and their future. The results aren’t always what we like, and a lot of the time it requires a lot of time and effort on our part (far more than you may think possible in fact), but the rewards for finding a clear solution are absolutely priceless.

How do you know? You just do, this doesn’t mean that the issue is immediately resolved, but so many of the things presented to you may feel just plain wrong… pay attention to that feeling, a mother’s intuition can go a very very long ways if followed carefully.

If they tell you that they think your child has ADD and you research it and find yourself having to admit that your child does in fact show many of the symptoms of ADD, research further into allergies, nutrition (way too often overlooked as a very obvious possibility) and the plethora of proven treatment options (many of which do not include formal medication), you will know along the way that you are making the most educated decision for YOUR child’s individual needs!

Do your research, exhaust every avenue, make medicating and extreme diagnosis a last resort and always be confident in the fact that you were given this child … to protect, grow, instruct, love and nurture!!!!!