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Chiladult? Whatever you call them, teenagers are a changin’ and parents need to know what to do.

Wow… What Happened?

That’s what most parents find themselves asking about the time their kids hit twelve or thirteen. But the changes really start unfolding between nine to eleven years old.

Your sweet little babies who’s whole world has revolved around you start revolving around everything but you. This can be really hard on the old ego, but it requires a steady hand, and an even temper. While your kids may not agree, they need you now more then ever.

This is a time when they start to explore new worlds, take steps of independence, and try to spread their wings and see what it is like to “Fly Alone”. Scary stuff for a kid, a lot more scary for the parent.

The best thing you can do as a parent is stay involved in their daily lives. Spend time together. Listen to what they are trying to tell you. Don’t be too judgmental. And help provide the tools that will still educate them, and steer them in the direction you want them to go.

Most kids who get into trouble admit two primary things:
Their parents don’t care about them (you have to stay involved for them to believe you care), and they are bored (they don’t have anything challenging their minds, or stimulating their creative energy).

Most kids this age actually love to build things, or create projects. They love to see the results of something that they did. They love to pursue talents they feel they have, and we should as parents encourage this, even if they give it up in a few months, this is how they experiment and “Find Themselves”.

They like sports, computers, hobbies, music, building stuff, and scientific discoveries. There is really an endless world of “Educational Toys” for kids this age, it really is too bad that so many kids are left to MTV and evil computer games that waste away their ability to think.

Recent studies have shown that kids left to play computer games more than 30 minutes at a time, and more than once a day actually change the chemistry of their brain and lose some of their ability to think creatively. They become to some extent Zombies.

As parents, we have a responsibility to make sure our children aren’t playing computer games, watching movies, and listening to music that is demonically inspired. There is a “Culture of Death” that invades the lives of our children today, and you can prove it to yourself by walking down any computer game isle and looking at the game covers and titles. Or tune in any music video channel. It is all Death or Sex. I often think that if we were to transplant someone from one hundred years ago into our popular culture and sit them in front of most of the movies we consider entertainment, they would likely have to be put in a straightjacket and hospitalized for mental trauma. If we abandon our kids to such filth, how can we be surprised when they walk into school and shoot down their classmates and teachers? How can we be shocked when they get pregnant, have abortions, and lose their innocence?

That is why we started our website, educational-toys-4u.com, to try and provide healthy alternatives, and to give you as parents a little encouragement to keep up the battle for your children’s future. Don’t just turn them over to the popular culture, they deserve much better, and they will thank you for your standing in the gap for them for the rest of their lives.

Just think… someday there will be grandchildren sitting on your knee, and thinking that you are the greatest thing since peanut butter.

Ain’t life Grand?

Tom Cooper

Tom & Shelley Cooper are the founders of http://educational-toys-4u.com offering healthy alternatives for the educational toys your children need to learn and grow.

Tom is the administrator of a large humanitarian aid project and Shelley left a successful career as a financial analyst to work in education. With a 12 year old son and a 9 year old daughter, they are keenly interested in the educational process and welfare of their children, and children everywhere.

How we train our children today will determine their futures tomorrow.

Visit now and subscribe to our Smart Play Newsletter: http://educational-toys-4u.com

Some questions keep bugging me.

For example, when I was five years old in 1937, what caused the blimp Hindenburg to explode terrifying that radio announcer at Amherst, New Jersey?

(See the video at: http://www.vidicom-tv.com/tohiburg.htm)

And when my dad was twelve years old in 1912, why didn’t the Titanic hit the iceberg head-on and save the ship?

(Go to: http://octopus.gma.org/space1/titanic.html to learn in short-form the details of the Titanic.)

My main question is: When our firstborn son was 12 years old in 1969, where did the Man on No Name Moon hide during our lunar explorations starting July 20, 1969?

(Go to: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/ap11ann/introduction.htm to read about the 30th Anniversary of the first landing.)

I heard a shuffling behind my chair. A girl’s voice said, “They were stupid to use hydrogen.”

It was Xrytspet again. I said, “Scram, Xrytspet!”

“Well, they were. They should have used helium.”

I said, “Xrytspet, they would have used helium if they had helium. I’ve figured that they made it 99.99988789% of the way across the Atlantic. Round that off and they made it!”

“Tell that to the charred ashes of those who were in the 0.00012%.”

I try not to laugh when Xrytspet is serious.

I said, “What caused the explosion; any analysis report from Fanton in G10009845788899990766?”

She flashed her lovely yellow eyes and said, “On the Net?”

“I’m always on the Internet when I’m writing. You know that, Xrytspet.”

“Let me get up to that keyboard.”

She pushed me aside and I plopped down into a pile of papers. She ignored my plight and typed a zillion miles an hour.

I tried to catch the code, but I’m not a super speed camera.

The screen went blank and the printer sent out a single sheet of paper. Before I could grab it, she hid it behind her back.

She said, “It was a spark!”

I said, “Give me that you little liar!”

She laughed and handed it to me. It read: xpffpt swrivtllssswaa flgzzzrffphll English translation for Taylor Jones, the hack writer, “It was a spark!” signed Silzrack.

I said, “What about the man on No Name Moon?”

Xrytspet said, “What about the Titanic?”

I said, “I know about the Titanic. If the captain had known that it would be disastrous to skim past that iceberg rather than hitting it head-on, that is exactly what he would have done.”

“He should have slowed when he got the iceberg reports.”

“We all know that, Xrytspet. The man on No Name Moon?”

She said, “There is no man on No Name Moon. You are just a child!”

At least she didn’t call me an idiot like she usually did.

I said, “My mother showed me the man on No Name Moon. Are you calling my mother a liar?”

Xrytspet said, “Let’s hop into the FnL7 Time Craft.”

That’s when it dawned on me that Silzrack had signed the communication from Fanton in G10009845788899990766.

The speed of light was nothing to these Fantonians.

Xrytspet said, “It is surprising to an earthbound idiot.”

I said, “You don’t have to read my mind and you don’t have to call me an idiot.”

She said, “Oh! Was that you I was talking about?”

The FnL7 Time Craft didn’t puff the dust of No Name Moon but my feet did.

For some reason I could not feel the heat and I could breath. I said, “Any reason why I’m not dead?”

She said, “Tee Hee!”

I said, “Are you going to answer my question?”

“When you get into the FnL7 Time Craft you are turned into a robot. Robots don’t feel heat or cold.”

“Last time you told me you were frozen when you traveled in space. So, where am I then, if I’m not here?”

“Back on Earth writing that stupid article. See, there is nobody here on No Name Moon but us chickens!”

Copyright©John T. Jones, Ph.D. 2005

John T. Jones, Ph.D. (tjbooks@hotmail.com)is a retired R&D engineer and VP of a Fortune 500 company. He is author of detective & western novels, nonfiction (business, scientific, engineering), poetry, etc. Former editor of international trade magazine. Jones is Executive Representative of International Wealth Success.

More info: http://www.tjbooks.com

Business web site: http://www.bookfindhelp.com (IWS wealth-success books and kits and business newsletters / TopFlight flagpoles)

In an age where children spend a huge percentage of their free time playing with expensive computer games, it’s nice to know that some old-fashioned games are still being played outdoors and cost absolutely nothing.

During the fall, wherever you find horse chestnut trees you’ll find children playing conkers. It’s a game that was enjoyed by their parents, their grandparents, and even their great grandparents and, hopefully, their own children will one day enjoy it, too.

What is A Conker?

A conker is a hard brown nut that’s encapsulated in a green, prickly case produced by the Horse Chestnut tree. The cases fall from trees when they’re ripe and can easily be collected from the ground.

In contrast to the nuts produced by the Sweet Chestnut tree, conkers are NOT to be eaten by humans.

Choosing A Conker

If you’re serious about your game, choose your conkers carefully. The best ones are symmetrical in form, firm to the touch and should be uncracked.

Use the water test. If a conker is damaged inside it will float in water so this is a good way of testing the density of your nut. Floaters should be discarded while those that sink to the bottom will be the hardest and the best.

Preparing A Conker for Play

Make a hole through the middle of your conker, going from the dull area at the top and down through the bottom. A thin skewer or hand-drill is useful for this.

Choose string that doesn’t break easily and thread a length about 12 inches long through the hole and tie a knot at one end to stop it from pulling through.

There are several ways to make your conkers harder, including:

Put conkers away to use the following year (they harden with age).

How To Play Conkers

Two players are needed, each with a conker of his own. Each player holds his conker from the string and attempts to hit the opposing conker.

If your conker is the one being hit, you should let it hang down with the string wrapped around two or three fingers to secure it - you don’t want your conker flying off when it’s hit! It’s up to your opponent to decide how high your conker should be held and it’s important it’s held still.

If you’re the striker, you should wrap the string around your hand in the same way as you would if your conker was being hit. You should then take the conker in your other hand and draw it back, ready to strike. As you release the conker, you should swing it down and try to hit your opponent’s conker. If you’re successful, this is called a strike. If you miss, you’re allowed two more goes before swapping positions.

If, when making a shot, the strings tangle together, the first player to call “strings” is awarded an extra shot.

If a player drops his conker or has it knocked out of his hand, the opposing player can call “stamps” and jump on it. End of one conker! However, if the owner calls “no stamps” first, the conker is safe (unless it smashed when it hit the ground, of course).

The game continues until one conker is completely destroyed; the one with the remaining conker is the winner.

Good luck!

Sharon Jacobsen is a freelancer content writer living in South Cheshire, England. For a competitive fee she will happily populate your website with interesting, key-word rich articles on any subject of your choice.

To see more samples of her work or to contact Sharon, please visit: http://www.sharon-jacobsen.co.uk

It must be very emotional for a man to become a father, especially for the first time. So many questions must revolve around a young or not so young man’s head. “How will I manage my life? Will I be a good father? Will we be able to provide for our child through his growing years? Will my partner’s treatment of me change once the baby comes? Will the baby like me?”

Every day on earth, millions of men become fathers. Possibly, only a few of them ever think of baby rearing as a job, and most babies grow into adulthood looking healthy enough. The emotionally healthy children, however, do possess fathers who take their child-rearing job seriously.

A father’s touch–the way he holds his baby, the way he plays with him, cares for him, nurtures him–matters greatly for an infant’s optimum development. In reverse, the interaction with his baby aids a father’s personal growth by teaching him how to be protective and nurturing.

A father’s attention improves his baby’s understanding, emotional development, and even intelligence. The baby sees the differences between Mommy, Daddy, and other people through his interaction with his father.

His father’s support helps the baby develop self-confidence and guides him to explore the world around him more enthusiastically. Fathers usually encourage perseverance in their children, more so than other people around them. Fathers also are the ones to persuade their children to take risks and overcome their initial fears of new projects.

By becoming role models to their children, fathers promote the concepts of honesty, fairness, gentleness, and empathy.

Parenthood is a scary mission. When a man gets the first news of becoming a father he may feel a plethora of emotions: happiness, shock, worry, pride, panic, fear, excitement, anxiety and a whole lot of other things. These feelings are understandable and acceptable because they are normal. Addressing these feelings by talking about them with one’s mate, a friend, or one’s family is a very constructive approach.

Also, if the father-to-be has had his differences with his own father in the past, it would help his situation greatly to discuss these problems with a professional, if not for himself, then for the sake of his baby. Promising to oneself not to repeat other people’s mistakes and to be the best father ever may not always work perfectly.

Being a good father starts when the baby is still in the womb. It is hypothesized that the babies do understand plenty of things before birth. Talking to the baby while touching the mother’s belly will make the baby get acquainted with his father’s voice, his intonation, and his moods.

At this stage, a baby care course would be a great idea for the expectant couple. Fathers who attend such courses take care of the babies better, and as a result, become closer to their children.

Supposing the future father passed through the pregnancy and childbirth together with his wife in flying colors, what can the couple, as parents, do once the baby gets home?

* The father has to understand and put up with his partner’s moods. Childbirth is a physical process and a woman’s body goes through many changes as the result of it. Most women suffer from baby blues because of hormonal changes. In such a case, positive relationship with the father of her baby helps a woman immensely.

* The father has to understand and accept that not only his wife but he, too, will experience physical and psychological discomfort and sleep deprivation.

* The father has to, not aid but, participate and become an equal partner in the care and nurturing of the baby. When he does that, he will start creating an emotional connection between himself and his offspring.

* Changing, bathing, dressing, feeding, holding, and playing with the baby are means to a good communication between a father and a child. While talking to an infant, using signs, or even using sign language, may help the bonding and the baby’s mental development.

* If the father and the mother are working and have found an alternative solution to their baby’s care, neither should feel guilty, but instead, they should turn the time they spend with the baby into quality time. If a situation can not be helped, it can be remedied.

* The parents have to stop expecting the continuation of their social life before the baby was born. On the other hand, they both should make an effort to take care of themselves, eat right, and get some rest and exercise.

* If the father has to be away for long periods of time because of work, laminating large photos of his face and hanging or placing or them around the baby’s crib can be considered an alternative. Also playing video and audio tapes of the father may help the baby to become familiar with the father.

The idea of “Practice makes perfect” works very well with fathers. The more a father pays attention to his baby, the more capable the father will become, and his baby will develop faster and better in his mental, physical, emotional, and social growth.

This article has been submitted by Joy Cagil in affiliation with http://www.BabyNameVote.Com/ which is a site for Baby Names.
Joy Cagil’s educational background is in foreign languages and linguistics. She also has experience in psychology, mental health, and visual arts. Her portfolio can be found at http://www.Writing.Com/authors/joycag