Nurturing Your Kids ' Mental Development

It is said that a child's brain is like a sponge which has the ability to absorb new ideas and knowledge. This is, of course, vital for his emotional and mental development. It is then important to provide your own with the opportunity to learn new things and have access to everything that will help him gain more knowledge than he can by himself.

Fortunately, there are many things that can help you do this and some of them are listed below:

1. Books- It is undeniable that children of any age enjoy reading books especially those which have colorful pictures and pop-up pages. Even children who are barely a year old are very eager to listen to bedtime stories. You should encourage your kids to read often. Take them along with you when you go to the bookstore. When the right time comes, you can teach them how to read. It is through reading that a child can have the opportunity to see the world from many different angles. With reading, he can explore the world even without traveling and, most of all, he can learn different cultures just by reading. Indeed, it is a fun and cheap way of enriching oneself during childhood.

2. Music- If you're a mother, you must remember relatives and friends who used to advise you to let your child listen to classical music while still in your womb. Yes, there is evidence that shows children who are exposed to music before birth tend to have a greater appreciation for it as adults. As your child grows up, it is good to introduce him to different genres of music and, if you can afford it, you can enrol him in piano, violin or guitar lessons.

3. Mathematics- Not everyone enjoys learning numbers and most certainly not children. Try to incorporate math in their daily activities such as making them count their toys at the and the end of playtime and have them compare the numbers they end up with. The challenge is to make math fun to learn. If it is fun, the child will have a greater chance of remembering each lesson he learns.

4. CAD for Kids- Every child has an artist in him. He may express this artistry through scribbling, writing, drawing, painting or even sculpting. Fact is, it is good for parents to enhance their kids' sense of creativity by giving them the opportunity through different activities. CAD is software used by design professionals such as architects and engineers. However, there is CAD for kids which allows children to discover their artistic passions through drawing on a digital medium. Who knows? Your child could be the next big thing in architecture for the future generations.

Nurturing your child's mental growth will not only help him achieve academic success. Also, a child who is are provided with many avenues for learning tends to grow up to be more emotionally secure individuals than one who is always left at home with a nanny who lets him sit in front of the television set all day without enough opportunity to engage in educational activities.

Tracking Your Prime Cost? Good, Just Make Sure You're Calculating It Right

One of the most important and telling numbers of any restaurant is its Prime Cost.

Prime Cost is the total of food and beverage costs plus all payroll expenses including wages paid to management and staff and payroll taxes and related benefits.

Prime Cost is a key indicator of a restaurant's profit potential and how well management is managing the restaurant's biggest and most volatile costs.

Generally accepted industry rules of thumb tell us that in tableservice restaurants the goal should be to keep Prime Cost at or below 65% of sales. QSR or non-tableservice operations should aim for a Prime Cost is 60% of sales or less.

When Prime Cost exceeds these percentages by more than a point or two, it usually becomes a real challenge for any restaurant to make a sufficient bottom line profit regardless of the other expenses on their P&L.

Some independent operators may not be getting an accurate reading of their Prime Cost because of the way owner's compensation is handled.

When calculating Prime Cost, the owner's compensation should be included in management payroll only if the owner is actively working in the restaurant and the amount of compensation does not exceed 4% of sales.

If you own a restaurant but have a GM manage the daily operations, don't include your compensation when calculating Prime Cost

For owners who perform the duties of a GM and/or chef, first see if your salary exceeds 4% of sales. If it does not, don't do anything. If it does, take the amount that exceeds 4% of sales out of Prime Cost.

Reason for the 4% amount is this. In general, GMs or chefs are not paid more than 3%-4% of sales. When a restaurant is very profitable, working owners may pay themselves more or even much more than 4% of sales so including all of their compensation in Prime Cost can cause it to be artificially high in comparison to other restaurants.

If applicable, reclassifying some portion of owner's compensation out of Management Payroll should give you a better number for comparing your Prime Cost to industry averages and rules of thumb.

Have a profitable week!  Jim Laube & Joe Erickson

Anger Management For Children - Parents Are You Facing a Losing Battle? What Are Your Plans ?

This may not come as a surprise but anger management for children usually starts with a child's natural progression. Aggression can be a stage that children will pass through, but if aggression isn't checked by parents who are good role models for their kids it can become a

uncontrollable two headed monster. If it isn't checked by a kids tween years, parents should prepare for all out war as tweens roll into their early teen years. So it is always recommended to nip it in the bud while kids are still young, but parents are lost as to how to actually get control of a disruptive child.

To get control of a disruptive child in order to improve your anger management for children skills, a well to do parent needs a plan. The objective of the plan should be one thing and one thing only--respect. If a child respects his/her parent(s), he/she is more unlikely to show an aggressive, belligerent attitude. A parent's plan should include daily training because it will take daily training to install new learned habits. But not only will a parent have to change their child's attitude, parents may find that their own attitudes need a make-over.

Parents who are trying to cultivate a new attitude in their children first need to stand in front of a mirror with the following question. How can I change myself first? That usually starts with letting go of any egotistical attributes a parent may have. Many parents will go ballistic if a child disobeys, and this in turn only makes a child want to retaliate against the parent. Don't forget that a child is a child. They will make mistakes, but as a parent it is up to you to calmly explain that the mistake was just that--a mistake. If you find yourself screaming at your child for a mistake, you're not teaching, you are pouring salt in an open wound.

Anger management for children starts with a planed out, patient, harmonious, low-key approach. Parents need to plan in advance how to deal with a disruptive child. Parents should plan how they will react when things go wrong. This will eliminate any unwanted spontaneous anger from the parent, and in return kids will respect parents more. While planning, don't forget that kids will be kids, and that includes a little mischievous ways. They should not be yelled at for spilling milk on the floor, or for grabbing M&M's at the local grocery store. You wouldn't scream at a tiger because he has strips would you?

Although it seems like you have come to a dead end regarding your child. Know that there is another way to win [http://www.teenangermanagement.info] back your power.This method has given me power over the situation. It has taught me how to remain calm and to be at peace with myself first.

Puberty is the most crucial stage of our lives and everyone goes through it at some point in life. All the major changes, physical, emotional and psychological occur at this stage. A human body begins to develop as one moves from childhood to adolescence. It has been scientifically proved that girls mature earlier as compared to boys. Girls get their first period around 12 years of age, i.e., two to two and half years after they begin puberty. But, this is a general observation, it differs from one girl to another. Some girls might get their first period as early as 9 years of age and as late as age 16. Naturally, the changes in girls are different from boys and so the timing of puberty varies a great deal in both of them. Puberty in girls starts between the ages 8 and 13 whereas in boys it is between 10 and 15 years. The wide age range can answer your question, why some girls and boys of your child's age still look like kids and some look more like adults.

The beginning of puberty at a very early stage is called precocious puberty. All individuals cannot take these changes easily as others and might be frightened and confused about it. Some schools talk to their students about these topics, but it comes very late. It is the primary responsibility of the parents to talk to their children during their early childhood, approximately at the age of 8 years. The next segment is divided into two parts because the ways to talk to girls and boys about puberty are different.

Talking to Your Daughter About Puberty

Earlier, it was like when a girl gets her first period, only then she knows about it. The mother or any other elderly female never bothered to explain what it was exactly or why it happens? The girl was not supposed to ask questions about it and even if she asked, very casual and ridiculous answers like "it happens" or "every girl goes through it" were given to her and nothing more than that. What should she make out of such statements? The girl used to feel only confused and helpless. But, nowadays, the situation has changed. Children are exposed to so many things that they are aware of these things before the right time and the information is also not from the reliable sources. Thanks to the present media and television. These mediums have become so much independent that they take up any issue and present it any how they want. In this case, talking about the issues of puberty remains an important point and you as a parent, should be very careful and start as early as possible to talk about puberty to your daughter. Here are a few tips to help you initiate the talk on this sensitive yet most important subject with your daughter.

    * Let her know about menstruation even before she gets her first period otherwise she will be frightened at the sight and location of the blood. You can start talking to her right from the age of 8 years.
    * Convince her that it is absolutely natural and normal and everyone has to go through it sometime in life only the timing differs from person to person because if your girl is alone in her group who still did not get her first period or if she is the first one to get it, she might feel embarrassed and as an odd man out.
    * Tell her the reason behind the small lumps that she experiences around her nipples and about the swelling of the breasts. Let her know that her body is growing according to her age and the above-mentioned parts are the major organs that reflect the changes and the growth prominently.
    * The growth of hair in the armpits and the pubic area is also a major change and needs to be talked about. Also the leg hair starts thickening and there is a rapid increase in the height of both girls and boys.
    * Last but not the least, be patient and open to answer any question raised by your daughter. Be clear enough in your explanation and make more use of scientific terms which will make both of you comfortable while conversing.

Talking to Your Son About Puberty

Boys may feel comfortable talking about their puberty with other males. May be the father, uncle or any other close male figure can take the responsibility of talking to the boy about the changes in his body. However, if there is no such person in his life, a trusted female can do the job. Many parents never talk to their kids about puberty. So the school in such a case must be advised to arrange a session on this subject. If you are going to talk to your boy about puberty, here are some instructions that will make your conversation better.

    * Like a girl, a boy also needs an assurance that whatever is happening to him is normal and there is nothing wrong in it. You should be confident enough while delivering your speech. This will make the boy believe you and won't feel awkward.
    * Make use of formal and scientific language which will make the explanation more clear. If you hesitate while pronouncing some words and say something different, it will only confuse the child.
    * Tell him that his penis and testicles will begin to grow during puberty and he will experience ejaculation. The concept of wet dreams or nocturnal emissions needs to be explained to the boy because he often gets wet dreams during puberty which makes him feel embarrassed. Nocturnal emission is nothing but the discharge of semen through the penis when the boy is asleep. The body is becoming capable of producing testosterone (male sex hormone) and there is an erection in the penis. This erection leads to ejaculation.
    * Tell your son about the growing hair on the face, in the armpits and the pubic area. There is also a considerable increase in the height and weight and the voice cracks and deepens.

Boys and girls both suffer from acne during puberty and it is important to tell them to take care of their body, especially the face and the skin.

As a last piece of advice, be prepared before the conversation, write whatever you want to say if you are not confident and get ready to answer any question. If you are not able to answer a question or feel doubtful, better take help from your family health care provider and clear it off. Finally, leave your child with something to read which will give him/her additional valuable information about this normal, natural yet important stage of life.

By Snehal Motkar

The Big Disaster For The Children. Divorce & Parental Alienation

Are you guilty? The big question for you..

Parental Alienation - when one or both divorcing parents attempts to negatively influence their children about the other parent -- is one of the most terrible outcomes of a divorce gone bad. It's a difficult and complex subject, but the outcome is always the same. Children who are emotionally scarred.

When you mix two egos with dramatically differing perspectives, you're bound to get an entanglement of emotions compounded by allegations, defensiveness and self-righteousness. Unfortunately, no one wins when parental alienation runs its course during and after a divorce. But it's the children in particular who lose in a big way. Many of them are affected for life.
Behind parental alimentation are parents who feel totally justified in hating, resenting or otherwise distancing themselves from their former spouse. They fail to take into account how this might psychologically play out in an innocent child who naturally loves both parents. Backed by the strength of their convictions, these parents feel validated in negatively influencing their children's attitude toward the other parent. Whether its overt put-downs, disparaging comments or more subtle nuances of distain, they make it clear that they do not like, respect or trust the other parent. The message to the children creates confusion mixed with anxiety, insecurity, guilt and fear.
What's a child to do when one of their parents says the other parent, who is genetically a part of them, is bad, wrong, hateful, or not worthy of their love? How should a child handle the burden of learning "truths" about their other parent that only an adult can comprehend? Who can a child turn to when Mom is putting down Dad (or vice versa) and it makes them angry, frightened or resentful?
Parents need to think before they act. They need to look ahead to the consequences before they share secrets that no child should have to know - before they take the innocence of childhood from children who are totally powerless to fix their adult problems. They need seek the counsel of professionals who can dispassionately help them make the right decision on their children's behalf. Then they need to work on healing themselves.

Psychotherapist, JoAnn Simmons, MA, LMHC, and a contributor to my new book, How Do I Tell the Kids about the Divorce? A Create-a-Storybook(TM) Guide to Preparing Your Children - with Love!, offers some sound advice in her new book, Stop Looking ... And Let True Love Find YOU! "There's nothing that hurts more than a broken heart," she notes. "Romantic love relationships are the toughest to release, especially if you feel wronged by your partner. A rocky romance often results in blaming the other person. Some people hold grudges for years. These grudges block the energy around your heart and tend to constrict giving and receiving love."
This not only hurts your children, it hampers your ability to move on with your life in a healthy, productive way - and keeps you from attracting a happier, more successful new relationship into your life. "The longer we hold onto the past, the longer we stay stuck in negative feelings related to the past. You must let go of old resentments," says Simmons.
The essential point here is that you don't let go of those resentments in order to benefit your former spouse - or to let them off the hook. You let go so you can make a space for a better future for yourself. That better future will inevitably be better for your children, as well. So everyone wins.
Parental alienation is a sure way to risk alienating your children from you - if not today, in the years and decades ahead. When making decisions about your divorce, child custody issues, visitations, holiday celebrations and all the day-to-day activities that fill our busy lives, remember to be a parent first. Put aside your personal feelings about your former spouse. Stop - and see that other parent from your child's perspective - as the Mom or Dad they deeply love.

Children-Parent Communication, absolutely needed

Communication between parents and their children can be a source of great pleasure and a wonderful bridge to being close and warm. Or it can be a source of deep distress for everyone and bring a family to the brink of disintegration. It is that important. Often when professionals are brought in to help a family they spend time getting to understand the dynamics of the family and it is the communication patterns that give them the best 'feel' for what is really going on inside that intense and intensely private space that is a family system.

How can we make sense of communication?
One of the most useful models we have found for making sense of how people are communicating with one another is through Transactional Analysis. We have a short video of the model available on U-tube. With this model it becomes easy to see how two people 'miss' one another and talk at cross purposes. This is especially true between parents and their children as parents and carers have to walk a delicate line between talking to the children as equals and coaching them to make the most and best of themselves and some tough love type conversations where they lay down the family law and set boundaries. Getting that balance right enough of the time makes a big difference to the success of the relationship.

Getting it right: Tough love and fun
One of the things that children respond to really well is fun! Not any great amazing revelation I know but it is something that in our observations of family communication we see missing much of the time. The way I understand it is that parents and carers get caught up with their responsibilities - put food on the table, roof over heads, make sure kids get on at school. It is like a computer programme running their system. What they lose in this programme is the fun button. Spending time with the children, playing, doing interesting things and just hanging out somewhere you both enjoy gives more quality to your relationship than anything else. I have often found parents worrying about having 'family time' and yet hating the time they do have as a family because it always leads to rows! In fact it is far better to have quality time with the children on a one to one basis as the priority and that makes family events much easier because the competition for time and energy has been relieved. Try it and see.

How Childrens Wallpaper Can Complete a Kid's Bedroom

Designing your child's room can be one of the most exciting moments that a parent and their child can go through together. There are many aspects that complete a child's room. Such things would include the bed, colour scheme, toys and the list goes on. One of the more important things that add the finishing touches to a kid's room is Childrens Wallpaper. The thing about Wallpaper that many people don't appreciate is the fact that it sets the entire theme of their child's bedroom.

Instead of having to worry about paint and different colour patterns to go ahead with, choosing Childrens Wallpaper would be the ideal choice for your kid's room. Seeing as there has been an increase in demand for Childrens Wallpaper the market has seen an increase in the variety of designs that are currently being offered. The designs that you find in most high street shops are very simple, plain and boring to be quite frank.

The best place top search out cool and trendy Childrens walloper is to look online. There are a number of sites that are currently offering Childrens Wallpaper in unbelievable designs. Some of the Childrens Wallpaper designs include themes of cars, dinosaurs, the sea, football pitch, fairy princess and many more. The great thing about shopping for this product online is that you are open to more variety. Having a look around on a number of sites will also give you an idea of which wallpapers are more popular amongst kids. It will give you a chance to read reviews of other parents that have bought similar wallpapers and give their views on the quality that they received. The best thing about shopping online for kids wallpaper is the price factor. You will find yourself having to pay a fraction of the price that you would have had to pay on the high street for really interesting and attractive designs.

Here are some pictures