Fall Allergys from Children's Claritin #MomCrew

In our family, almost everyone suffers from allergies - some are year round and others are seasonal. I am lucky enough to be part of the Children's Claritin Mom Crew and was sent a back to school survival kit and some tips to share with you!

Some of these tips are extremely practical and others are common sense but I know that sometimes reminders don't hurt.
Here are the tips brought to you by Children's Claritin:

1. Be sure to have Children’s Claritin, the #1 pediatrician-recommended non-drowsy allergy brand, on hand!

2. Multi-vitamins are building blocks to having a strong immune system. Make taking a multi-vitamin part of your child’s daily routine.

3. Let there be light! Mold doesn't like sunlight, so try to keep your curtains open during the day. Should be easy during the summer months!

4. Did you know that most pillows trap allergens, dust mites, and bacteria? Monitor the cleanliness of the pillow your child with allergies sleeps on and replace if necessary.

5. Back to school season means lots of laundry for many moms. Be sure to remove laundry from the washing machine promptly. Allowing wet clothes to sit in the washer means mold can quickly grow there.

6. Monitor pollen counts and adjust outdoor before and after school activities accordingly. Dry, windy days can be particularly high in pollen.

7. Showering or bathing at the end of the day as opposed to the morning can be helpful in removing allergens from body surfaces and hair.

8. Stay hydrated! Always send your child to school with a bottle of water. Drinking lots of clear fluids through the day can help get rid of toxins and flush out body.
9. Peak pollen production typically occurs in early morning, so try to plan outside activities at other times of the day.
Enjoy your school year, and be blessed with good health and under-control allergies :)
Disclosure: "As a member of the Children’s Claritin Mom Crew, I receive product samples and promotional items to share and use as I see fit. No monetary compensation has taken place and any opinions expressed by me are honest and reflect my actual experience."

Back To School

Is it really time to be getting ready for another school year? It sure is!
This year I will have a kindergartner and a first grader, and only one girl at home with me. To be honest, the girls are more excited about the start of this school year than I am. I am going to miss spending the whole day with the kids and going swimming and being able to just do whatever. I am, however, looking forward to the routine and structure (a little bit) that comes with the school year.

Emily, our oldest child, is going to a new school this year for first grade. The elementary schools here are different that anywhere that I have ever seen - there is one school that is entirely kindergarten, another school for 1st and 2nd grades, and a third school for the 3rd and 4th grade. Strange I thought at first, but it is neat that the libraries at each school are tailored to the specific reading levels of the students there, as well as the playgrounds. Since this is only our second year in this community and in these schools we don't know any of the teachers at Emily's new school, but are looking forward to getting to know them!

Natalie, our middle child, is going into kindergarten this year and she is SO excited about it. She went to preschool last year, but that was only half day four days a week - so she has a little bit of a surprise in store for her. Our kindergarten here is full day, which I was originally not a fan of but am now that our oldest daughter went last year and I saw first-hand the benefits. The biggest thing that Natalie is looking forward to is being able to do the monkey bars everyday at recess!
This year is going to be a bit different for us though, as I am also starting back to school this semester. I am having to put my youngest in childcare a couple days a week for a few hours each day. I struggle with this a little bit, because I have never had any of my kids in a care setting where I did not know the person who would be caring for them while I was gone. So it is definitely a little nerve wracking. I have faith that it will all work out fine, and confident that my daughter will benefit from the play time with other children her age.

I think that we are finally done school shopping - clothes and supplies! It was definitely a lot more this year with two in school, I am dreading the days when the girls are all teenagers and want to pick out all their own clothes and shoes...lol!

I hope that your back to school transition, if you have one this year, goes smoothly for you! What is the one thing that you find easiest or hardest about back to school for your family?

$500 Back to School Giveaway from Cookie's

$500 Back to School Giveaway from Cookie's


What is Cookie's?

Cookie's is the World's Largest Kids' Department Store and the #1 School Uniform Headquarters in the U.S. Based in Queens, NY, Cookie's now has a 7 store emporium as well as the online store, CookiesKids.com.

What is the Contest?

CookiesKids.com would like to give one reader a $500 gift card to buy clothes for back to school! Two winners will receive a $250 gift card each and three winners will each receive a $100 gift card.

How Do Readers Enter?

Readers will enter a picture of their family member wearing an item of clothing that Cookie's carries at the Cookie's Flickr group. The reader will then fill out a secure Google Form where the rules and regulations of the contest are posted.

Flickr Group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/cookieskidsbacktoschool/
More information - http://cli.gs/LZM5R8
Reader entry - http://cli.gs/LZM5R8
Cookie's Website - http://cookieskids.com