Wishing you a warm welcome to UltimateMama, the "ultimate" resource guide for today's busy, caring parents who want one-stop solutions, recommendations, and parenting advice.
UltimateMama and her family hit Costa Rica in March and did a terrific day trip to Nicaragua as well. Perfect weather, ideal scenery, and terrific food made for a great vacation for all in Central America.
A few tips:
-Stay at the Andaz Costa Rica hotel in Guanacaste and make sure you get the breakfast included in your room rate as it is expansive and delicious (monkeys even stop to take notice).
-Take advantage of the kayaks and paddleboards at the hotel’s private beach which you can reach by shuttle bus. UltimateMama and her two kids even hit the Nature Center Papagayo Explorers Club.
-Use Tropical Comfort Tours through the Andaz to book excursions. The Buena Vista Extreme trip didn’t disappoint with zip lining, the longest waterslide in Costa Rica, horseback riding, mud baths, hot springs, and lunch. All near the Rincon de la Vieja Volcano National Park.
-Look into Tropical Comfort’s day trip to Nicaragua where one can take in breakfast, Lake Apoyo (a crater lake), Mombacho Volcano, Masaya Volcano National Park (active volcano), a carriage ride in Granada, and a boat ride on Lake Nicaragua. The Garden Café was delightful for lunch and included Thousand Cranes, a great shop for local crafts and goods.
UltimateMama and her girls enjoy getting everyone who walks through their door into the holiday spirit through decorations. A clever way to re-use a small metal Christmas tree is to add Easter eggs to it! Any remaining eggs could spruce up the otherwise boring base. Quick, easy, inexpensive, and incredibly pleasing to the eye!
Everywhere you turn, you hear debates surrounding kids and technology usage. Every family has different rules and boundaries relating to technology, but most agree that technology is not going away, and it is best to teach our kids how to navigate it safely early on.
The internet has amazing advantages as it relates to children who explore it in a safe manner. Numerous creative, user-friendly, inexpensive (sometimes FREE!), and unique websites exist for children to gain expertise in certain areas, explore new territories, or further their education in specific subjects. Today’s children can use the internet to do everything from honing their culinary skills to exploring countries across the globe to learning another language to perfecting their math facts.
However, parents are not always around to patrol their child’s usage of technology, and the policing inevitably falls into the hands of caregivers. It is a terrific idea to clearly communicate your expectations surrounding technology in your household upfront to both your caregiver and your child. A few house rules to think about as your child navigates the internet include:
• Do not download attachments or install software without the supervision of an adult.
• Do not agree to meet with people you interact with online.
• If you notice anything online that makes you uncomfortable, bring it to the attention of an adult.
• If someone asks to meet you in person, ignore the request and alert an adult immediately.
• Never give out any personal information or details about yourself, family members, or friends (including name, address, phone numbers, age, school, camp, extracurriculars, teams, photos, or passwords).
• If you use a public computer, make sure you log out of all accounts you accessed during the session.
• Be careful of any screen names you create and make sure these names do not include any of your personal information such as your first or last names.
• Do not compromise other people’s online work or accounts.
• Do not bully, gossip, or post anything inappropriate about anyone online.
• Be mindful of your tone if you post online comments.
• Never post your image or personal video clips online (those of your friends, family members, and acquaintances are off limits as well).
• Beware of minimum age limits on many social media websites and respect them.
• Avoid clicking online ads and pop-up ads, as they can contain viruses or expect you to provide your personal contact information.
• Understand that not everything you read online is true or accurate, and if you are conducting school research online, you should ask an adult (teacher, librarian, or guardian) for respectable websites to use.
• Limit your usage of the internet and be aware that spending time in person with friends or family members is the best way for you to socialize.
• When in doubt, grab an adult for guidance, advice, and supervision.
Whether you print a list of rules and post it to your refrigerator, or create a technology contract signed by all (you, your child, and your caregiver), you will want to be forthcoming about the importance of online safety. Clearly state to your caregiver that your end goal is to make sure your child is protected when he is online under her supervision while you are not present.
You may also want to make it clear to the caregiver that you do not want any personal information or images about your family posted online in any capacity for privacy concerns. Additionally, if your child brings a friend home, you should tell your caregiver that you expect her to relay your house rules regarding technology to him so everyone is on the same page.
Bottom line: it is important that parents and caregivers work together to teach children about safety and responsibility as it relates to technology. Remember, technology will be a big part of our children’s lives for years to come!
Kristen Duca and her husband are the parents of two girls in New York City. She has served as a contributing writer for New York Parenting and Long Island Special Child magazines, and she’s author of “Ultimate Nanny: How to Find, Interview, and Manage the Most Important Person You Will Ever Hire – Your Child’s Nanny,” which is available on amazon.com. She blogs at ultimatemama.com.
We really can get inspiration from our kid chefs. UltimateMama is not one to give her children dessert after dinner each night. Moreover, due to her crazy schedule she doesn’t always have the typical ingredients to make a dessert at her disposal. However, she is not one to deprive her children of a tasty treat when they have the vision. Recently, much to her delight, her kids created a quick, easy, and delicious dessert treat using only 3 ingredients:
UltimateMama NEVER runs out of wrapping paper and she NEVER pays full price for wrapping paper. Her secret? UltimateMama peruses store aisles the first few weeks in January and buys all of her wrapping paper for the year at 75% off (plus). Of course she picks cute patterns for next holiday season but also she buys solid colors that happen to be on sale (greens, reds, silvers, golds) that she uses all year long for birthday, anniversary, housewarming, graduation, and other gifts. She adds fun, seasonal ribbon and nobody ever knows that she paid less than $1.50 a roll for 80 sq ft of quality wrapping paper at CVS. Hit your local drugstore, card store, or big box retail store now!
Over the weekend UltimateMama and her two little ones made beautiful holiday ribbon trees that are the talk of the town (or at least the small beach village). These inexpensive tabletop trees are keepsakes for years to come and ideal centerpieces for your holiday table. The ribbon trees only required the following:
– various types of thin ribbon (which can be poked through easily with a straight pin) with a width of at least 7/8 inches and cut into 4 inch pieces
– one longer piece of ribbon at least 5/8 inches in width that will fit along the base of your tree (to cover the white of the cone)
– one Styrofoam cone in any size you wish (you can purchase at Michaels) but UltimateMama likes at least 14 inch cones
– a package of straight pins
To assemble:
Cut the longer piece of ribbon to fit along the bottom/base (widest part) of your tree and secure it with straight pins (overlap the ends). Start with one piece of your ribbon and fold it in half and pin it with 2 pins at the top of the cone. Leave 1/4 inch of the ribbon dropping off the edge. Continue to fold each piece of ribbon and pin these pieces of ribbon right next to each other along the cone. Pat yourself on the back after you have completed a row. When you start a new row make sure you add the ribbon about an inch above the prior row and start pinning the ribbon in between 2 “bottom layer” ribbons. Make sure the cone is covered with ribbon and no whiteness of the cone is showing. Fold each 4 inch ribbon piece and pin with 2 pins until the row is complete. Then start the next row..and on and on! At the top you can wrap a piece of ribbon around the top or make a creative star.
This ribbon tree is a great holiday gift as well! You can custom make it to your recipient’s tastes by selecting ribbons with their favorite color or pattern!
UltimateMama and her kids enjoy entertaining around the holidays. From Halloween through New Year’s Day the family kitchen is bustling with excitement. Each year, new creations are tried and tested. This year’s winner is an easy appetizer turkey that the kids can make a few hours before your party or gathering. It is a real crowd pleaser as it looks beautiful and tastes great too. What you need:
– Crackers of your choosing (we used a combination of Ritz and Pretzel Crackers)
– Cheese of your choosing (we used thinly sliced Cheddar and Monterey Jack but any cheese will do–just cut it to fit your platter)
-2 blueberries for the eyes (or olives or peppercorns)
– Thinly sliced salami cut into circles (or pepperoni)
-Two toothpicks for the legs
To make–just let your creative juices run wild and experiment! You may want to use the meat for the turkey’s face and save a larger slice of cheese for the turkey’s body!
UltimateMama and her youngest daughter loved the Yayoi Kusama “Festival of Life” exhibit at David Zwirner at 525 West 19th Street in New York City. The fun, colorful, vibrant exhibit runs through December 16, 2017. Kids and adults of all ages will enjoy Kusama’s amazing work — the red and white polka dot environment was UltimateMama’s favorite! Just beware of the long lines as the holiday season kicks off in downtown Manhattan.
UltimateMama and her kids love to make colorful fruit pops all year round. UltimateMama’s three ingredient ice pops are simple and healthy. Here’s how you make this simple recipe for kids:
2 cups of cleaned and strained raspberries (or strawberries)
4 kiwi (peeled and cut into cubes)
1 cup of orange juice, you can add more if needed (or pineapple juice)
Puree all of the fruit and place into three separate bowls. Fill your popsicle containers with the pureed raspberries by carefully pouring the fruit into the mold then freeze for about 45 to 60 minutes. Pour the pureed kiwi on top and freeze for another 45 to 60 minutes. Top off with the orange juice then cover with the popsicle lid/sticks and freeze until solid. Remove and enjoy your 4 fruit pops!
UltimateMama was bummed when one of her daughters was a bit sick on vacation to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in April (which is an ideal month to travel to that region). Destined to have a terrific vacation, UltimateMama had to alter her plans and create a kinder, gentler itinerary that was still fun and adventure filled. Ultimately, the trip was one of the best as UltimateMama combined light exercise and adventure with amusement park fun. Make sure you research the National Parks website to see what is open during your visit. A few tips:
-Fly into Knoxville McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS)
-Stay at the Park Vista which has a fun pool, nice breakfast, and gorgeous setting
-Eat at The Park Grill in Gatlinburg which is a family friendly restaurant with a huge menu that will satisfy all appetites
-Visit Sugarlands Visitor Center which is part of the National Park Service and pick up some maps and souvenirs
-Hike to a waterfall called Cataract Falls which is a hidden gem and easy for all ages and great for pictures
-Drive over to Clingmans Dome Hike near the North Carolina – Tennessee boundary to explore the Appalachian Trail and learn that the Dome is the trail’s highest point at 6,643 feet (there was even snow when we visited in April)
-Visit Dollywood to let off some steam, ride roller coasters, catch some nature related shows, and make ornaments at Mountain Blown Glass
