Author: Site Staff

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Toy Drop-off Locations

Drop off a new unwrapped toy to one of these locations.  Your donation, through Toys for Tots, will help bring smiles of joy to local children that are in need during this holiday season.

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Tips for Transitioning Into a New Routine

Tips for helping a child with special needs. Going to a new school. Returning home after vacation. Trying to break an old habit and start a new routine. Change, or transition, is difficult for most people — whether age 3 or 33.

Laundry

Household Savings in the Laundry Room

For many families, household budgets are still tight in the wake of the recession. There are plenty of small ways to start cutting costs. One of the best places in your home to start saving is the laundry room.

Dad Profile: John Cristenbury

Local dad, John Cristenbury talks about family. For my children I am most worried about what the world will be like as they grow up.

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Charlotte Mom – Molly Hedrick

Take a peek inside the life of local mom Molly Hedrick and get a glimpse of everyday parenting - from the madness to the mess-ups!

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Making Your Teen a Safe Driver

Good parents want their children to be able to tackle all of life's challenges. We've got tips on how parents can play an active role in teaching teens to be safe behind the wheel.

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Speak to Baby Using Sign Language

What could be better than a young child not having developed language skills, yet being able to communicate with his or her parents? Today, many children can do just that because their parents are teaching them sign language.

Clearpixel

Finding Help to Raise a Grandchild

Are you a grandparent raising a grandchild? You are not alone. More than 2.4 million grandparents are doing the same thing. They stepped in at a moment's notice when their families needed help. They put their own plans on hold. They decided to take care of their grandchildren when the parents of those children could not.

Mom Home Makeover

New Mom Home Makeover

Create a safe haven well before the baby arrives. Find great advice on nursery no-nos, bath safety, feline frets and baby-proofing.

Ready, Set, Camp! Making the Right Choice for Your Child

You are considering a summer camp, but how to choose? There’s a camp that is ideally suited for every child, providing a summer of growth and fun whether your child attends a day or overnight camp, a specialized or traditional camp.

What Kind of Traveler Are You?

Our family has put a lot of miles under our belts (seat belts, that is). And during our travels we’ve gotten to know each other better.

Is There Good in Grief?

A beloved friend of mine died February 22 from a sudden illness. There were no goodbyes, bedside gathering of girlfriends, tearful requests to look after her children or final moments holding her hand.

Everything Is New Again

January marks the beginning of a new year. And we’ve definitely had a lot of experience with new this year at Charlotte Parent. We started the year with a new editor ... me. And we ended with a new Web site at www.charlotteparent.com. And all the while and in between we’ve welcomed new readers ...

What S New For Babies

What’s New for Babies

New babies and new parents have a world of goods awaiting. Here are a few books, great gear and media items to help you get started.

50 Years of High-Flyin’ Fun

While throwing a popcorn lid at a Thanksgiving Day picnic more than 50 years ago, inventor Walter Fredrick Morrison was inspired. Afterward, he took a gravity-defying concept to an innovative toy company with a plan to bring his revolutionary flying disc concept to back yards, parks and beaches everywhere.

A New View of Homesickness

A new report urges parents and children's doctors to change their thinking about homesickness among children, to see it as a nearly universal but highly preventable and treatable phenomenon — rather than an unavoidable part of childhood.

Celebrating Parents

Did you know that July 22 is Parents Day? It seems fitting that after May, the month of Mothers, and June, the month for Dads, July would follow with a day to honor both parents. It is a national holiday created in 2004 by legislation intended to honor parents who are vital to the development of a future generation.

5 Benefits to Family Camp

Parents across the country pick their children up from camp to hear them tell tales of new friends, singing songs around the campfire, and other unique programming, such as rock star lessons, swimming with manatees, rock climbing, and even trapeze lessons! Listening attentively, parents find themselves wishing they could have gone to camp too, and now, they can!

School Daze

It’s back to school time and at our house that means a heightened level of semi-controlled chaos. The last languid days of summer are treasured, hour-by-hour, like precious sips of cool water on a blazing hot afternoon, until they are gone, and we stand staring at the first harried day of school bringing an abrupt ending to our idyllic season of rest.

Cleaning the Air for Kids

Each day the routine act of riding a school bus exposes children to a toxic mix of airborne carcinogens and particles from diesel exhaust. Diesel engines have long been known to spew dirty exhaust from their tailpipes, but studies now reveal that levels of diesel pollutants getting inside school buses can be up to four times greater than outside levels.

Airport Diversions and other Kid-Friendly Tips

Summertime travel with children, especially when it includes airports, can be challenging. Jerry Chandler, aviation expert and father of five, is a correspondent for Cheapflights’ "Flight News" blog. He offers these tips for families flying with kids. • Book direct, non-stop flights whenever possible, to avoid airplane changes.

Easy Lunchbox Makeover

The school cafeteria has become a place filled with poor diet choices. From franchise fast food offerings to soda machine temptations, today’s kids are faced with a lot of unhealthy options at lunchtime. So, what can parents do? They can pack a better lunch! But many parents could use some help — the typical child’s lunch box is often filled with fat, sugar and salt, and lacking healthy fruit, protein and whole grains.

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Meet a Pink Power Mom

Life and death. Like most young couples, Charlotte resident Mary Hamrick and her husband Chris sort of took this for granted. Life was something that you were granted until you got really old and then you died. That was so far off. Married less than a year, they were your typical 30-something newlyweds: busy being in love, working hard and thinking about starting a family. Cancer certainly did not fit into the plans . . . until one day, Mary found a lump.

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Teen Talk

What do teens say about . . . AIDS* Two decades after the federal government mandated in-school instruction on the life-threatening virus, American high schoolers responded to a survey:

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Backpacks = Back pain?

Up to 33 percent of all children and teens experience back pain, according to the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America. Although there’s little chance a child will suffer permanent injuries from carrying an overloaded backpack, many children do put undue stress on their spines by using bags designed to hold only five or six pounds to support their 15- or even 20-pound loads.

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Love Is …

I love you — three little words that send the most powerful message in the world. It’s hard to believe only eight letters have so much impact on our lives.

Ages & Stages 11-18: Teen Dating Violence

For single teens, the prospect of a Valentine’s Day without someone special may seem a bit unpleasant, but as child psychologist Christie Rizzo, will testify, it’s better to be safe and single, than dating and in danger.

Irish Soda Bread

Just as many Southerners would not let New Year's Day pass without a meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas, many Irish descendants would not let St. Patrick's Day pass without corned beef and cabbage. Your family will look forward to the annual meal.

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Mom Exercise Groups

Stroller Strides to Baby Boot Camps for Charlotte area Moms who need a connection and some exercise!

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