Correction: Free ice cream day is Saturday!
The free Sonic ice cream giveaway for students in kindergarten through fifth grade is Saturday, May 29. My blog yesterday (also printed on page 2 of today’s Oklahoman) had the incorrect day. Get your coupon online at http://www.ok4saving.org/rsvp/rsvp.html.
My apologies for the mixup!
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Kids can get free ice cream
Yep, that’s right! For just one day, Sonic is giving away free ice cream cones to all kids from kindergarten through fifth grade, to help celebrate their achievements this past school year and what’s to come.
Sonic has partnered with Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan to help celebrate these students’ successes on what better date than 5/29, of course!
To download the coupon, click here.
Just let them know you have the coupon when you’re ordering.
Now go out and celebrate your child’s great school year!
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Caution: Swim season is here
Back in October, I wrote a post about the importance of water safety for infants and toddlers. (Click here to read that post.) In wake of another drowning, I want to reiterate the importance of taking the best safety measures we can to prevent another tragedy.
Drowning is a leading cause of unintentional death for children. The American Academy of Pediatrics has for years discourage swim lessons for children age 4 and younger. But this morning, they have changed their stance. According to their news release:
“New evidence shows that children ages 1 to 4 may be less likely to drown if they have had formal swimming instruction. … The new guidance recommends that parents should decide whether to enroll an individual child in swim lessons based on the child’s frequency of exposure to water, emotional development, physical abilities, and certain health concerns related to pool water infections and pool chemicals.”
You can read the entire news release by clicking here.
You can also watch a segment from the “Today” show that features different ways kids learn to swim and about the Infant Swimming Resource program that is available here in Oklahoma. To watch the “Today” show May 24 clip, click here.
As the Memorial Day long weekend approaches, now is the time to get your child familiar with the water and the ways to survive if he or she were to fall in.
And remember, nothing can replace a watchful and attentive parent or guardian. Don’t take your eyes off your children for a moment if there’s water nearby. Be sure your pool has the proper fencing/barriers to prevent your child from getting to the water unattended.
For everything water safety, go the AAP website: http://www.aap.org/healthtopics/watersafety.cfm.
Have a fun, but SAFE summer.
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Libraries gear up for summer
Do your kids enjoy reading or being read to? Or do they sometimes need a little encouragement or incentive?
The Metropolitan Library System has just the reward – the 2010 summer reading program called “Make a Splash – Read!”
Children from birth through sixth grade can win prizes in June and July at any Metropolitan Library branch. Kids can be read to or read on their own. For every reading goal completed (8 books, 800 pages or listening to 8 hours of reading), a child can enter drawings for big prizes like a Nintendo Wii or digital camera. Kids also get smaller rewards along the way for the first two goals achieved.
There also will be shows at several library branches throughout the program. Go to metrolibrary.org or contact your local branch to find out when performances are.
On Monday, more information about the summer reading program will be available on the website as well.
Also, the Metro Library System is seeking volunteers to take their books out into the community to read to children at elementary schools, after-school programs and summer programs. This is a great opportunity to create lifelong readers out of children who may not get enough exposure to books or reading for enjoyment.
The library system released a video explaining the “Come Read with Me” volunteer program. Click here to watch the video.
Happy reading!
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Safety can be fun!
Just ask the people who put together the Warr Acres Safety Fair.
This Saturday, May 22, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., there will be tons of safety fun in the parking lot at 3800 N. MacArthur. Kids can meet members of the Warr Acres Police and Fire departments, the Bethany Fire Department, EMSA, Medi-Flight, OG&E, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Department and much more.
Activities will include a moon bounce, face-painting, a dunk tank, safety demonstrations (including a really cool smoke trailer demo), car seat checks, health checks, emergency vehicle walk-through and more.
So bring the kids to Warr Acres Saturday for some great safety fun!
For more information, go to cityofwarracres.com.
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Talking tornadoes with kids
Within the past few months, my 4-year-old son has come into a new obsession: Tornadoes.
While you and I are scrambling for cover in a tornado siren, this kid’s eyes get as wide as saucers and the excitement level gets beyond control. Everything he sees is tornado-related.
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- From finding “tornado tables” in the local ice cream shop …
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- To drawing twisters every chance he gets …
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- To getting excited about hail in the yard.
But not all kids are ready to brave Mother Nature’s fury. Especially if those kids have had to go through an actual tornado and witness firsthand the destruction and injuries it can cause.
To help parents and caregivers explain how a tornado works, what to do when one is coming and how to deal with the destruction and aftermath of these storms, the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Office has put out a coloring book called “After the Tornado.”
It’s a good read for parents and kids of any age and children will surely appreciate the fun-to-color pages.
To download the coloring book, click here.
For more information about the book, click here.
And for all your severe weather information, coverage and safety tips, go to the Know-It: Severe Weather page by clicking here.
If your family has any tales of storm survival or tips to help kids get through storms, comment here or e-mail me.
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Camps for preschoolers
If you’re like me, you may be trying to find somewhere to put your preschooler this summer if their day care is closed for a week or you have a sitter going on summer vacation. Believe it or not, there are actually some pretty interesting camp options for the 3- to 4-year-old set.
Here are some of the camps being offered this summer (costs vary-click on websites or call for more information):
Oklahoma Children’s Theatre, Oklahoma City
606-7003
Dates: June 1 – Aug. 13
Preschoolers travel through time and learn performing arts basics. Camps conclude with a performance. Other camps available for up to age 12.
oklahomachildrenstheatre.org
Casady School Summer by the Lake, Oklahoma City
749-3192
Dates: June 7 – Aug. 13
Over 100 programs are available from pre-K to high school.
casady.org
Fine Arts Institute of Edmond
340-4481
Dates: June 7-Aug. 13
All types of artistic camp classes for age 2 through 8th grade.
edmondfinearts.com
Oklahoma City Zoo, Oklahoma City
425-0218
Dates: June 7-Aug. 6
43 themed camps offered for ages 4 to 15.
zoofieldtrips.com
Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, Norman
325-4712
Dates: June 7 – Aug. 6
Summer Explorers program is for ages 4 to 14.
snomnh.ou.edu
Ginger’s Kindermusik, Oklahoma City
722-2379
Dates: June 21-25 or July 19-23
Themed camps for children from birth to age 7 and piano keyboard camps for ages 7-8.
gingerskindermusik.com
Mad Science of Central Oklahoma, various locations
285-9643
Dates: June 21 – Aug. 6
Camps for kids age 4 to 12 include Secret Agent Lab, Science AdventureQuest and Little Agents Academy.
madscience.org/okc
Oklahoma City Museum of Art
236-3100
Dates: June 1 – Aug. 6
Themed camps for ages 4 to 16 focus on permanent exhibits and special exhibits.
okcmoa.com
Heritage Hall Day Camp, Oklahoma City
749-3002
Dates: June 1-July 23
Camps for ages 3 and older include enrichment, creativity, technology and sports options.
www.heritagehall.com
Victory School of the Arts, Warr Acres
440-2186
Dates: June 21 – Aug. 7
Classes offered for age 3 and older in all types of dance, tumbling and guitar.
victorydance.tv
Unpluggits Playstudio, Edmond
340-7584
Dates: June and July
Camp sessions have a superhero or dinosaur theme.
unpluggits.com
If you know of any other fun summer camps available for preschoolers, comment here or email me.
Happy camping!
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Happy Mother’s Day
The second Sunday in May is my favorite day of the year.
Not for the gifts, or the special deals moms can find around town. Not for the flowers or for that nice dinner out. But because it’s a day set aside to cherish our own moms and our children. It’s the one day a year many of us can celebrate having a mother and being one at the same time.
Like many of you, I am completely in love with being a mom. It has brought the greatest joys imaginable and every day I wake up and know how truly blessed I am to have my little boy there. It’s the kind of love that is truly unconditional and unwavering. The kind of love that lets you know you’d do anything for your children. And it’s the kind that I celebrate in my own way every day, not just on Mother’s Day.
Mother’s Day makes me stop and think about how much my own mom has always loved and sacrificed for me. Although if you ask her, she wouldn’t call them sacrifices, but just “the things that moms do.”
So give your kids the biggest hug, not just this Sunday, but every day. Cherish those little gifts they’ll give you that they made with their own two hands. Call or visit your own mom. Tell her how much you love and appreciate her. Let her know how much you’ve learned from her. And enjoy your special day.
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
Check your medicine cabinet
In case you haven’t heard, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, in conjunction with the FDA, has issued a voluntary recall of 43 children’s medicines. Among them are brands Tylenol, Motrin, Zyrtec and Benadryl. And chances are, if you have kids, you have one or more of these at home.
So for the safety of your children, and for peace of mind, take a few minutes and clean out your medicine cabinet. Go to the website links below to get all the information you need on what to do with these medicines. The FDA is recommending the use of generic brands for now.
For a full list of products recalled, click here.
For frequently asked questions about this massive recall, click here.
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
All things kids can be found on NewsOK
There are some interesting and informative kid-related posts on NewsOK.com. Here’s a sample:
Keep your kids of out danger on busy streets:
http://newsok.com/little-ones-face-big-dangers-in-oklahoma-traffic/article/3458443?custom_click=headlines_widget
An outdoorsy opportunity for young people this summer:
http://blog.newsok.com/outthere/2010/04/27/cool-job-openings-for-outdoorsy-young-people-at-the-chickasaw-national-recreation-area/
An interesting column about the interaction between smokers and babies:
http://newsok.com/smoker-contact-can-be-awkward/article/3451726
A story about summer meals for children on school lunch programs:
http://newsok.com/article/3458266?custom_click=columnist
A look at the Edmond Fire Department’s Safety Village, built just for children:
http://www.newsok.com/article/3458154?searched=safety%20village&custom_click=search
A story about charter schools as a “smart alternative”:
http://www.newsok.com/article/3455196?searched=safety%20village&custom_click=search
And a review of the family movie “Furry Vengeance” :
http://newsok.com/actor-brendan-fraser-takes-a-beating-in-new-family-comedy-furry-vengeance/article/3457719?custom_click=pod_headline_movies
Happy reading!
-Erica Smith
esmith@opubco.com
