Rabu, 26 September 2012

Saving for Your Baby's College

If you haven't had a child yet, then you may believe that it is too early to think about saving for your child's education. However, this is not the case. Many people are completely unaware of the fact that college tuition is increasing at a dramatic and some would even state alarming fashion. The simple but startling fact is that a four-year degree, even from a state school, may become increasingly difficult for the average family to afford. This necessitates preparing for your baby's eventual college education well in advanced.

College Tuition is Skyrocketing
College tuition costs are increasing at a rate that far exceeds inflation and other increases in the cost of living. While you might still be thinking about your baby shower or baby shower invitations or gifts, it is definitely not to early to think about how you will pay for your child's education.

Meeting with a Financial Planner
Taking the time to develop a strategy regarding how you can pay for your child's future education is one of the best moves you can make to help your child. Meeting with a financial planner or discussing the situation with a business savvy friend or relative is a fantastic first step. You will likely find that if you start saving for college when your child is still an infant, you are able to accomplish a great deal with a nominal monthly contribution.

Finding solid, dependable and trusted advice is a major part of this process. Not all financial planners are of equal quality or experience, which is the case with any industry. Asking your friends and relatives if they have anyone that they trust or can recommend is a prudent step.

Being Involved in the Process
Keeping an eye on how you are investing your money in your child's college fund is of paramount importance. Trusting a financial planner explicitly is never a wise decision and could lead to serious problems. You need to be involved and keep a keen eye on how your investment is coming along. After all, your entire child's education could be on the line, and that means you need to be an active participate in the process and not simply a spectator.

Niki Johnson is a writer who specializes in articles about planning the best baby showers and getting the best deals on baby shower invitations.

Best Education Toys You Can Provide for Your Baby

When you have a small baby in your home, proving him or her the right toys I very important. Toys not only help the babies to pass their time, but also educate them. In this article, you will be able to find information on some of the top education toys, which you can provide for your kids. When you are looking for education toys for your baby, you will be able to find end less options on the market. However, there are some specific toys, which are considered the best in educating kids on different levels.

Basics First Blocks:

Blocks are considered as one of the most traditional, as well as best toys invented to educate babies. This toy will help your baby to be more creative as well as helps in his or her overall development. The basics first blocks come with ten bright-colored blocks. These blocks come with different shapes. As the baby grows older, he or she will be able to sort, stack as well as identify the colors as well as shapes. This type of toys is best for the babies six months to three years of age.

Alphabet Zoo:

With the help of this education toy, kids will be able to learn and recognize the alphabets easily. They will also help your baby to know about different types of animals names, as well as sounds.

Apart from these, they are also different types of educational toys available on the market. These toys will help improves your kids skills as well as hand/eye corporation to a great extent. If your kid is interested in watching television, there are different types of CDs available on the market, which educates your son or daughter by using an easy method.

For more information, visit baby-cribs.com. They offer tons of products regarding baby cribs, including Convertible Cribs or even a Sleigh baby crib.

Brainstorming Names For Your Baby

Sure, you can wade through 60,000 names and look for the one that catches your fancy. Another approach is to sit down with a glass of wine ( grape juice for mom-to-be ) and make the following questions into a game. Brainstorm using some or all of these questions and see what kind of ideas they spark. Remember, there is no rule that says a baby can only have one name. If you work together, you might find a few that you both like and respond to at the same time.
  1. Find out who are your favorite artists?
  2. What is your favorite movie? Who are the stars?
  3. What is your favorite novel? Who are the main characters?
  4. Name every family member as far back or distant as you can remember?
  5. Figure out what part of American history do you like?
  6. Find out what countries are your ancestors from?
  7. What languages do you speak?
  8. What is your favorite city? What is your favorite state?
  9. Try to remember where did you go on your first date?
  10. Where were you married?
  11. Where did you go for honeymoon?
  12. Your favorite teachers?
  13. Your favorite flowers, gems, trees?
About the Baby
  1. Where was he or she conceived?
  2. Where will the baby be born? City? Address?
  3. What do you want baby's name to say about you?
  4. What do you think your baby will look like?
  5. What kind of personality will she or he likely have?
  6. What color hair or eyes do you imagine?
  7. What is the name of your OB / GYN?

Paul Banas is a founder of GreatDad.com. He writes articles on parenting styles, parenting, pregnancy and dads, parenting tips, baby names, pregnancy symptoms and many more topics related to dads.

Jumat, 14 September 2012

Educational Baby Gifts

All parents aspire to have an intelligent kid. They dream of having a little Einstein who will stand out from the rest and make them proud. Such aspirations are natural because parents only want the best for their child, and that is something that everyone approves.

Parents should bear this in mind, that intelligent kids are not groomed overnight. It all starts from their upbringing since they were babies. The baby's background depicts his level of intelligence when he grows up. So, we need to be very keen in choosing the right environment for them.

What better way to enhance the child's mental development is to give him/her educational baby gifts.

These gifts come in all forms of learning tools such as toys, books, or even videos. But regardless of its kind, educational baby gifts are superb when it comes to the baby's first education. From the extensive varieties of educational baby gifts, educational toys top the most. Also called "stimulation toys", these toys are famous for their fun and learn combination. These toys are designed to stimulate the baby's mental advancement. Since babies are still young to comprehend, these toys are intended to incite their senses, such as the sense of sight, hearing, and touching.

Toys like rattles and mobiles offer the best option. These toys are coupled with sounds and designs that easily capture the infant's attention and accelerate his learning abilities. Toys like these are also best for developing the baby's motor development. Babies as we all know are very curious little ones. When they hear or see something that ignites their inquisitiveness, they always show an effort to look at that object and try to grasp or hold it with their tiny hands. These small movements contribute wholly to their motor development. Toy blocks are also fit for the learning stage of the baby. Toy blocks for infants are covered with soft cotton material that is safe for the baby. Added designs and colors give a creative touch on these toys. With these in hand, babies can stack it or even throw it for their enjoyment.

Another educational baby gift that is also popular for babies is an educational baby book. Babies love to hear people talk; much more if they are the ones being talked to. They enjoy listening at certain sounds. They love to listen while staring at big, bright, and attractive pictures. They tend to be mesmerized with the attractiveness of the picture in front of them; and thus, enhance their visual and mental state. When contemplating in giving a book, make sure it is baby-friendly, with big pictures that catch the baby's full attention.

Whatever gift you give the baby, keep in mind that it's going to create an impact on the baby's development. Choose what you think is appropriate for the baby's physical and mental progress. Go for gifts that are fun, with learning features and most of all; choose gifts that help the parents bond with their child.