Fennell Seeds

Growing skills in parenting and organizing.

How to Fill Up Hundreds of Water Balloons Fast.

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This post may contain affiliate links. See my full disclosure here.

My kids came running in with such excitement yelling that they were going to have a water balloon party and invite a bunch of kids in the neighborhood. They had such joy that I just couldn’t say no. My husband gave me the look…the look that said there was no way that he wanted to be standing at the sink filling trying to fill up hundreds of balloons. Never fear, I had seen the solution on TV, we can now fill up hundreds of water balloons fast.

We had an easy water balloon party. It is amazing that it only takes 2 minutes to inflate hundreds of water balloons. Whoever invented this product was a genius.

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Are Your Kids Stalling When You Want to Leave the House? Use This Trick

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Some of my worst parenting moments when the twins were toddlers were when we were trying to  get out the door to go somewhere. Not only was it the chore of getting the diaper bag ready, it was the trial of herding the boys into the car. They just didn’t want to get in the car or the car seat. It was a 10 minute process and sometimes ended ugly. Definitely not my finest parenting moments.

I started talking to friends and one recommended the book Love and Logic. As soon as I figured out this one trick, I found I could stay a step ahead of the situation. This even worked on all sorts of situations like leaving a store or just going upstairs to bed.

When I used this trick getting out the door with my kids was so much easier. These types of tricks in my Mommy bag just help make the day run smoother.

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5 Minute Pop-Culture Lesson for Kids – Who is the King of Pop?

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A few weeks ago I figured out that my kids were behind in their education. They had no clue about who  were some the most important figures in America, Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson! I did a little lesson on Elvis last week and it is amazing how fast they picked it up and how often we hear Elvis music. Next I moved forward to my 5 minute pop-culture lesson for kids – who is the King of Pop.

I wanted to teach my kids about Michael Jackson. This includes some fun facts about Michael Jackson that kids will think are fun plus some links to his videos. Remember when the moonwalk was introduced to the world?

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5 Minute Pop-Culture Lesson for Kids – Who is the King of Rock & Roll?

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We were driving a couple months ago in the car and I pointed out some blue shoes on a sign and started singing “Blue Suede Shoes” and the boys were freaking out covering their ears. I said what’s wrong don’t you like Elvis and they said “Who’s Elvis?”. WHOA, WHAT!!! I have been failing in their education! How have I missed this important subject that these kids of mine need to know? So I said that as soon as we got home I was going to have a lesson on Pop-Culture and we were starting with Lesson #1…who is the King of Rock & Roll – a lesson for kids on Elvis.

When I realized my kids didn't know who Elvis was I had to fix that immediately. Here is a 5 minute lesson for kids about Elvis. A few facts and links to his videos on YouTube. I love that they can recognize Elvis songs when we are out now.

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How to Decide if Your Child Should Quit an Activity

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Do you have a child that isn’t happy with their activity anymore? Or it is getting really bad where you are having to drag them out of the car or bribe them to get their uniform on for practice? Are you wondering how to decide if your child should quit an activity?

I was raised to never quit anything. I was a NCAA Div 1 athlete and had success in part because I was not ever a quitter….so this is very new territory to me. Some of my deeper thoughts are that I am partly worried that it could make them a “quitter” in life.

Is your child no longer liking their sport or activity? How to decide if your child should quit. Here are 2 situations where we had to make this decision and our results.

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Having Kids Spaced 4 Years Apart – Pros and Cons

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Before I had kids and before we had our youngest daughter I was so curious about how many years apart we should have our kids. I think everyone draws back to their own experience growing up with siblings. I have 2 younger sisters. One that is 3 years younger than me and one that is 10 years younger. While we are all good friends now, when we were growing up the one that is 3 years younger than me and I fought non stop. Looking back I don’t know how my parents survived it. I vowed not to ever have my kids 3 years apart but ended up having kid spaced 4 years apart.

My list of pros and cons of having siblings 4 years apart in age. Here are my thoughts on the positives and negatives to having children 4 years apart in age.

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4 Favorite Outdoor Games to Play with Kids of All Ages (No Toys Needed)

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This past week we were on spring break and had a great time at the beach. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t warm enough to be at the beach all day so we spent more time at the park than we normally do. Usually I can just let them run around at the park and I don’t need to entertain but we were there every day for at least an hour so I had to get creative to keep it fun. My boys helped me come up with 4 favorite outdoor games.

Easy fast games to keep things interesting when playing outside with kids. This weekend my boys taught me some of these and I love that they are quick and not complicated games that all different ages can have fun. I actually enjoyed playing them too.

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Top 5 Favorite Pool Toys for Kids

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This post may contain affiliate links. See my full disclosure here.

Do you spend all summer at the pool like we do? I love being able to walk to our neighborhood pool. We spend many afternoons there with neighbors. Our pool is opening up soon (yea for living in the south) so I was taking stock of what toys I need to replace from last year and which ones I can throw away.

My 3 kids love the go to the pool every day. Here are their top 5 favorite pool toys the past couple years.

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Does Your Child Always Need the Last Word in Arguments? Here is What to Say.

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Arguments with my children always bring out the worst in us. When tempers flare, voices rise and while we are trying to teach them what ends up happening is a power struggle.

With a strong personality in a kid (aka a strong-willed child), sometimes the argument becomes a power struggle. Does this sound familiar?

If your child always needs the last word then there is an awesome statement I have learned to use to defuse the situation.

Argument | Last Word | Arguing with Child | Argumentative | I love having a phrase like this to use when my son. It helps so much with a child that always needs the last word in an argument.

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