My Choice for a Tablet for Children

by Phoebe Farag Mikhail

Until April 4, 2015, my choice for a kid's tablet, the Kindle Fire HD Kid's Edition, is on sale at Amazon for $25 off. It's my choice for my two children, aged 3 and 5, and I'll tell you why:

1- Kindle FreeTime Unlimited. FreeTime is an app that you can only run on a Kindle Fire. On FreeTime, you can create a profile for each of your children, and you can control what content is available to them by adding the content to each child's profile. Once the Kindle Fire is in FreeTime mode, your child cannot get out of that mode unless you put in a password. You can also control how much time each child spends on the tablet on weekdays and on weekends, and even down to the type of use. For example, you can set it to allow 1 hour per day for apps, 45 minutes per day for videos, and 1 hour per day for ebooks. You can also set it so that your child cannot use the apps or video unless they have completed the ebook time first.

You can run FreeTime on any Kindle Fire, and you can also sign up for "FreeTime Unlimited." This is a monthly subscription that allows Amazon to curate children's content into your tablet appropriate to their age. This includes ebooks, apps, and videos that you would otherwise have to pay for each separately. The pricing for one child is $4.99 per month ($2.99 if you are a Prime member), and for a 'household' account of up to 4 children it is $9.99 ($6.99 if you are a Prime member).

I have been using FreeTime with my children for over a year and I have not seen Amazon curate anything inappropriate, although you do have the option to remove any content you don't want in your child's profile. Most of the content that Amazon provides comes from PBS Kids, Sesame Street, Disney, and Nickelodeon. Amazon also suggests content based on the activity on FreeTime. My son has repeatedly asked me to read him a new ebook he found on FreeTime about fire trucks and fire fighting because those are the videos and apps he has been gravitating towards.

So, why the Kindle Fire Kid's Edition if you can run FreeTime on any Kindle Fire? Well, a purchase of the Kid's edition gives you one year of FreeTime Unlimited for free. And:

2- The Kindle Fire HD Kid's Edition comes with external padding and a 2 year worry-free warranty against any damage to the tablet. We have already lost the use of an iPad due to several drops by the kids. My own Kindle Fire has withstood many drops and still functions well, so I find that overall this tablet is more sturdy than some of the others on the market. With the padding and the warranty, the kid's edition should last the kid's drops and spills. I also want my own Kindle Fire back so I can read my ebooks on it!

3- The price is right. Currently, Amazon is running a promotion until April 4, 2015 on the Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition. Its price starts at $124 right now (it usually starts at $149), and you can also choose to pay for it in five monthly interest-free installments. This price is significantly lower than most of the popular tablets on the market. I opted for the 7 inch screen and the 16GB memory, which brought the cost to $189. Below I will explain why I think you will need the memory.

Every tablet has its pros and cons. One of the cons of the Kindle Fire at its original 8GB memory is that the memory actually fills up quite quickly - once your child chooses an app to play with, it installs on the device, and too many apps will cause device to overload and stop working. You would then need to remove items from the device, and in some cases, people have had to soft reset the tablet. This is why I opted for the greater amount of memory, so that this would happen less often.

The other con with the Kindle Fire is that its app choices are not as wide as those on iOS or other Android based devices. I've read about very interesting children's apps and been disappointed that they are not available on Amazon's App store. The choices, however, are expanding, and I still find that FreeTime Unlimited offers enough choices for my kids to learn and play with in the few hours they are allowed to use the tablet per day.

And, to be honest, my kids get most of their learning through offline free play, reading books together, and doing outdoor activities and trips. No tablet can replace those!

Full disclosure: I am an Amazon affiliate, which means that if you make a purchase through the links on this page, I will get a small percentage of that purchase. I do not recommend any books, apps, or products on my blog that I do not use myself or have not read myself and would use with my own family. You are not obligated to use my links to make your purchase, but if you do, thank you!

How to Buy Books for Cheap

by Phoebe Farag Mikhail

The musty scent of the Strand used book store in New York City remains a happy childhood memory ingrained in my mind. Every week, my father and I would take the subway down to the Strand, where he would leave me to explore the children and youth section while he explored the religion section. We never came home empty handed, and for a few dollars, we brought home treasures.

The beauty of books is that their value lies not in their material worth, but in the words written inside.

As the holidays draw near, giving the gift of a book can be a treasured one. The right book can show how much you have thought you have put into the gift, regardless of its cost. One of my favorite bloggers, Glennon Doyle Melton, on Momastery, suggests the following method for gift giving that she uses for her children:

One Gift You Want
One Gift the World Needs
One Gift to Wear
One Gift to Read

Today I’m going to help you find that "gift to read" without breaking the bank, both online and at "brick and mortar" stores.

Online: There are now numerous online retailers of used books.  Books whose condition is marked “used-like new” or “very good” are often pretty much good as new. “Good” and even “acceptable condition” work well for both bibliophiles like me and for children, who care more about being held and read to than having a bright and shiny brand new book. For children, books are new if they are new to them, and it's extra exciting if they come in a package in the mail.

Thriftbooks is one of my favorite online used book sellers. Shipping is included in the price, books start at $2.99, there is a multi-book discount of $.50 on each additional book if you order more than one book from the same warehouse. If you subscribe to their email list, you will get occasional discount offers, like buy 4 books, get one free going on right now with the promo code HOHOHO (good till December 14). Thriftbooks also has a wish list option and you can get instant notifications if a book you want appears in any of their warehouses.

Amazon offers listings of used books from many different used book retailers, saving you the trouble of finding an online retailer of every single book you want. Just click “used offers” on the book you are considering. Books can start at 1 cent, but will include $3.99 shipping, so the lowest cost you would pay is $4. And if you can’t find the book used, Amazon generally has the lowest prices on new books online. From now till December 14th, if you enter promo code BOOKDEAL25, you will get 25% off of one book.

Brick and Mortar:

The Public Library. No, I am not talking about borrowing books. You can actually buy books from your library, VERY CHEAPLY. Once, and sometimes twice a year, your local public library will hold a library book sale. Some libraries have a book sale on an ongoing basis. The books on sale are often in great condition, and are donated books as well as cast-offs from the shelves. Every library has its own system. At mine, they hand out large shopping bags, which we can fill up and pay a total of $5 for all the books in the bag. I’ve filled up my bag with upwards of 20 books and paid only $5 for all of it, and all those books retail for $12-15 each.

Used Bookstores. Used bookstores abound in every town and city in the US. In England, many charity shops also have used book sections. Some Barnes & Noble branches contain used book sections. If you get a Barnes and Noble Membership, you get 10% off everything in the store, including used books, adding up to greater discounts.

Local Bookstores. Both big box and local bookstores have “bargain bins” where you can find great deals on new books. Sometimes bestsellers that are now out in paperback will be found in hardcover at the bargain section.

Enjoy shopping for your gift to read, and don’t forget to buy yourself one (or two, or three…)

(Note: The Thriftbooks and Amazon links above are affiliate links, which means that if you use those links to make your purchases, I will receive a small commission. I affiliate with retailers that I purchase things from and would recommend. You are not obligated to use those links, but if you do use them, thank you!)

"Having it All" Does Not Mean Doing It All, or Doing it All At Once (part 2 in a series)

by Phoebe Farag Mikhail

If we examine the definition of "having it all" I wrote in my last post on this topic, we will find that it actually contains more doing than having. What it really says is that a woman who "has it all" is a woman who is busy raising children, maintaining a relationship with her spouse if she has one, managing household tasks, and working hard at her job so that she can continue to advance in it. I'm exhausted just reading all of that, and if that is really "having it all," then it is no surprise that many women these days don't want to "have it all." That is to say, they don't want to do it all.

And we don't have to do it all to "have it all." I believe for any man and woman to "have it all," he and she must first decide what makes him or her content, and do those things. "Having it all" should mean having the life one is content with at the present time.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikekline/864788349/

Having it all, but not doing it all, could mean that during the season of raising young children (or teenagers), staying at home or staying in a less demanding job might be the best choice for a parent. Nancy Pelosi, the first female speaker of the House in the US, did not start her successful and visible political career until the youngest of her five children went to college. Ann Marie Slaughter, the Princeton professor who kicked off this national conversation a year ago with her article, "Why Women Still Can't Have it All," already had a successful (and flexible) career in academia when she went off to her "dream job" at the State Department. I would argue that taking that job was not about "having it all," but doing too much at the same time. One of my most popular posts was about a crossing guard who knew how to do his job joyfully, sharing his joy with other people in the process. He didn't need a jet-setting job to be content.

On my last post, one of my readers shared an important article by Deborah Spar, the president of Barnard College and author of Wonder Women: Sex, Power, and the Quest for Perfection. She answered her title, "Can Women Really Have it All," with a 'no,' but spent the rest of the article talking about all the things women feel they need to be doing, and how they need to stop trying to be perfect in doing everything. Her conclusion:

The most crucial thing for women to know today? No one does it all. We each, if we're lucky, will have our chance to leave a mark on the world, but we are trying too hard to be perfect. So don't emulate Wonder Woman; think about what's wonderful to you instead. Then boldly, audaciously, joyfully, leave the rest behind.

In other words, stop trying to do everything, and be content with who you are and what you are able to have now.

Many families in the US unfortunately do not have the resources or the support to make ends meet, let alone "have it all." Recently, for example, a McDonald's employee was arrested for allowing her 9 year old daughter to play in the park during her shift. The lack of affordable, quality child care is part of the problem, and the inability for many shift workers to predict their own schedules and arrange for child care is another. Being content does not mean being complacent - we do need to work together to make it easier for all of us to work and take good care of our families at the same time. The Schedules that Work Act, recently introduced in Congress, is one step in the right direction. So is the Strong Start for Children Act, a bipartisan bill that would expand access to early childhood education and infant and toddler care to low and middle income families. You can support that bill by clicking here.

What are other ways we can help each other "have it all" (according to my definition above)? Please comment below (or subscribe to my blog via email) for another chance to win my Moleskine giveaway. The last chance to enter is tomorrow, 7/30. US addresses only.

The Primal Way to Show Love to Your Child

by Phoebe Farag Mikhail

Congratulations to Marianna A. for winning my "Brain Candy" giveaway, a copy of the novel Illuminations by Mary Sharratt. I'd like to Visit the "Brain Candy" section of my AStore for more summer reading recommendations, and stay tuned for the next giveaway!

I’ve written about how important it is to discover our children’s primary love languages in a previous post about The Five Love Languages of Children. According to the book, primary love languages don’t emerge until children are a little older, past the preschool years. Until then, parents should share love with their children in all five languages. So this is my second post in a five part series with practical examples of using the five love languages with my own children. You can read my first post, on words of affirmation, here.

Love Language: Physical Touch

Sometimes, my pre-schooler wakes up on the wrong side of the bed, often with no obvious explanation, like going to bed late the night before, or being unusually hungry (I admit, he gets this from his mom). We used to combat his negativity with more negativity, which of course led to a downward spiral of arguments and time-outs all day. Reflecting on this, I considered another way to combat his morning bad moods. Lately, he had been getting interested in medicine, pretending to be a doctor and giving us “shots” with any writing instrument he could find. I had an epiphany, and decided to try my new idea the next time toddler woke up in a bad mood.

Soon enough, pre-schooler had a cranky morning. After refusing to say his morning prayers or eat his breakfast on no uncertain terms, I looked him and said, “It looks like you lost your good mood somewhere. I think we need to go back to your room, have an operation and find your good mood!”

Curiosity peaked, he allowed me to scoop him up and take him back to his room, where we conducted the following “operation:”

“First, we smooth out the frown on your face.” I smooth his frown wrinkles in between his eyes with my thumb.

“Second, we find your smile.” I turn up the corners of his lips; by this time he may already be smiling.

“Third, we TICKLE TICKLE TICKLE TICKLE!!!” By this time he’s laughing.

Finally, I ask, “Did we find your good mood?”

Usually, he’s laughing at this point, and says, “yes,” which is promptly followed by a hug. Sometimes he says “no,” just so we can do the “operation” again. Occasionally, it doesn’t work – sometimes he’s just crabby, and sometimes it is for valid reasons, like hunger, a late night, perhaps a headache, or a bad dream that he can’t verbalize. Sometimes we don’t do the whole “operation” – just scooping him up and holding him is enough to remind him that he is loved, even when he is cranky.

It’s no accident that in the well known story in Luke 18 and Matthew 19, parents bring their children to Jesus so He could touch them, and pray for them. “Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to Him and said, ‘Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.’” (Luke 18:15-16, NKJV). By asking Jesus to touch their children, they were asking Him to express love for them. One of the first ways a child receives love from parents is through physical touch.

The emotional and psychological benefits of cuddling infants and young children are well known; some studies have even shown that cuddling premature babies helps them experience less pain during medical procedures.

I have no trouble finding opportunities to cuddle my two year old – she will often play for a little, then come over to me to be hugged and kissed, then go back to playing. My son did that too, but the “cuddle breaks” are fewer and further between as he spends more and more time focused on play. Thankfully, showing love through physical touch does not always mean cuddles, hugs and kisses. He still likes to sit on my lap to read a book, ride piggy back on Mom or Dad, play rough-and-tumble every so often, hold my hand when he’s scared, or help me “find his good mood.”

How do you show your older child how much he or she is loved?

Hey Buddy! (How to Enjoy Your Job and Spread Joy to Others)

By Phoebe Farag Mikhail

My kids call our crossing guard “Buddy,” because whenever we see him, whether in the car or walking, he greets us with a huge smile and a shout: “Hey, buddy!” and sends us off with a blessing: “Have a good one!” He does this with everyone who crosses his intersection. If we see him while walking, and the intersection is not busy, he’ll let my 4 year old son hold his “stop” sign for a minute. Drivers honk their greetings at him, and I’ve even seen cooler-than-thou high school students enthusiastically high-five him as they cross the street.

When there is no one to cross the street, “Buddy” keeps himself busy by feeding the birds and listening to music on a small boom box. On rainy days, he is even more cheerful in his big yellow raincoat, and no less boisterous in his greetings. He can’t be younger than 60 years old, but is as carefree in his demeanor as a toddler jumping in puddles, while responsibly keeping people safe as they cross the intersection. It’s abundantly clear that “Buddy” enjoys his job, and even more so, spreads this joy to everyone he meets—even the birds.

Many of us know people with “ordinary” jobs who manage to make them extraordinary. From the city bus driver who knows the names of all her regular passengers and waits for them if they run late, to the cashier who entertains a whining toddler while you dig for your wallet. These people manage to generously bring cheer to others, even others whose salaries and benefits may be 10 times theirs. This is what I’ve learned from “Buddy” and others like him about how to enjoy my job and spread joy to others:

"enable" by quickredfoxandkits

1- Do my job well, whatever it is.  When “Buddy” addresses every driver crossing the intersection, he gets the drivers eyes off their smart phones and reminds them that there will be little people crossing this street.\

2- Be generous with my smiles. The word generous is the key here. “Buddy” is generous with his cheer and it makes everyone else around him cheerful.

3- Make everyone I help feel special. Letting my son hold his stop sign is just one example of how “Buddy” makes everyone who crosses the street feel special. I’ve heard him address other students by name.

4-      Keep my energy level high. “Buddy’s” joy is authentic, and it shows that he is drawing from a wellspring somewhere that makes him able to give this to others. When not helping people cross the street, he snacks on small snacks and listens to music, both of which raise energy as well. 

Do you know someone who does an “ordinary” job exceptionally well? Share your story in the comments below.

Baking, Giving and Learning with Kids

By Phoebe Farag Mikhail

We had new neighbors, and I wanted to welcome them with homemade cookies. But I was also having a carpal tunnel syndrome flare up, and could not stir batter without my hands going numb.

A week later and a four-toddler play date, and I had a big box of cookies to give, plus plenty to nibble on at home, too. Baking with my kids is becoming my new favorite pastime.

The last time I baked so many cookies, it was last Christmas, and I made a batch for everyone on our block. My toddler came with me to distribute them, permanently associating baking cookies with giving gifts. So there was very little protest when I removed over half of the cookies he (and three other toddlers) had creamed, mixed, and folded into a box to give away to the neighbors. They were not just giving away their sweets, they were giving away their time and effort – and they were ok with that.

There are other benefits to baking with kids. They can learn so much through baking – reading, counting, fractions, telling time – and even science lessons about how cakes rise and why eggs (or fruit) keep cookies together. 

But when one of our elderly neighbors said hello to my son, and he asked me later if we could bake cookies to give to her, I knew the lesson in giving was the most important one he got from baking together. 

Baking with my toddler has lessons for me, too—lessons that can be applied not just to parents, but also to teamwork and organizations. Toddlers stirring sugar and flour and butter and cocoa and eggs will spill some of it. They will lick their raw egg batter covered fingers. They will dump all the buttermilk into the flour mixture instead of alternating between the two. They will create cookies shaped like trapezoids and blobs. Here are the lessons I have learned from this:

1- Patience, flexibility, and forgiveness. It took me longer to bake when my helpers were much smaller than me and needed step by step instructions. Yelling at them when they spill some flour or lick the batter took away from the fun of the process and risked losing them as kitchen helpers in the future. Besides, I’ve spilled stuff too while baking – so let me take the "plank" out of my own eye first!

My son stirring batter. (c) Phoebe Farag Mikhail, 2013

2- There is a cost to not including the kids – they will need attention anyway, so if I did all the baking myself, I would have been constantly interrupted by their needs and demands, and spent the time fighting them off instead of working together. 

3- The perfect is the enemy of the good. What is perfect, anyway? Cookies shaped like blobs taste just as good as perfectly round cookies. Who cares? My neighbors loved the cookies, and it turned out they had a little boy my son's age, who was so excited to eat cookies made in part by his toddler neighbor.

On our next rainy or snowy day, I’m baking these cookies with my toddler.

What have you learned from doing things with children lately?

The Faces of Food Stamps + DVD Giveaway (Read till the end!)

By Phoebe Farag Mikhail

It didn’t hit home for me till I read about an adjunct professor at Duquesene University in Pittsburgh who died almost homeless, in absolute poverty. I’m an adjunct professor. If I had to live alone (thank God, I don’t) on the average salary of an adjunct professor at almost any university, I would be eligible for food stamps – and I would need them.

And then I read an essay by a US war veteran on food stamps. “I didn’t risk my life in Afghanistan so I could come back and watch people go hungry in America,” he writes. “I certainly didn’t risk it so *I* could come back and go hungry.” This veteran is not alone. At least 5,000 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants (the official name for food stamps) have identified themselves as working for the armed forces, and many more are spouses and children of people serving in the armed forces.

If the idea of college professors and US war veterans using food stamps isn’t surprising enough, the makers of the documentary “A Place at the Table,” (nowavailable on DVD), have created a website highlighting SNAP “alumni” – people who once used food stamps and who are now leaders in their communities. They include actors, members of Congress, state governors, authors, athletes, teachers, lawyers – and all of them have one thing in common – they used food stamps at some point in their lives, and this crucial government support when they needed it most helped them move on to the important leadership roles they play today.

Perhaps the most important face of food stamps is the face of a child. Currently, 45% of food stamp users are children, and another 26% are adults with children in their homes – making children the largest group of beneficiaries of the SNAP program. I personally know many working families who rely on the SNAP program to keep food on the table for their young children while trying to make ends meet. Kayla Williams, also a US war veteran, was one of them. In her article about SNAP she writes:

Kayla Williams, Author/Veteran

Like many on public assistance, my family was made up of a working single mom struggling to make it and provide for her child. She was a small business owner, an artist who ran a series of galleries ... There were good years ... then the economy sagged, and there were lean years – years of food stamps and bland government cheese, Christmas presents from charities, peering around the corner to watch my mother sobbing into piles of bills, wondering if the landlord would get fed up with how often we were behind on the rent and kick us out. Even when I was young, I could pick up on the looks we got when buying groceries with food stamps. In high school, it was mortifying to hand over tickets for free or reduced-price school lunches. Those tiny colored scraps of paper might as well have been a scarlet "P" sewn to my shirt, announcing to the other teenagers that I was poor.

Last week, the US House of Representatives passed a Farm Bill that cut the SNAP program by $40 billion. There is still time to save SNAP and invest in the potential of these children by ensuring that they do not go hungry. The Bread for the World blog provides information on how to continue to take action on this matter. I will be contacting my Representative to express my anger at his vote on this bill.  

In addition to taking action on the Farm Bill, I am spreading the word about the SNAP alumni website and the documentary, A Place at the Table. I encourage everyone to explore the website and watch the film, which not only talks about the overall hunger problem in America, but puts a real face on the people that live with hunger, and who are trying to get out of poverty. If you would like to win a free copy of the DVD, there are two ways to gain entries: 1- You can comment on this post below AND share the post via Facebook or Google+ and 2- You can subscribe to my blog via email and verify your subscription using the form below. The winner will be randomly chosen on October 4th, 2013, and contacted thereafter. Please note that I can only ship to US addresses.

Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner

What are you doing to end hunger in your community?

My Hero: Children and Words of Affirmation

By Phoebe Farag Mikhail

I’ve written about how important it is to discover our children’s primary love languages in a previous post about The Five Love Languages of Children. According to the book, primary love languages don’t emerge until children are a little older, past the preschool years. Until then, parents should share love with their children in all five languages. So this is my first post in a five part series with practical examples of using the five love languages with my own children. 

Love language: Words of Affirmation

My toddler has always been into trains, and particularly Thomas and Friends, both the books and the movies. Lately, he’s also become interested in Fireman Sam, the “hero next door.” When Thomas and his train friends do a good job, they’re told that they are “really useful engines,” and when Fireman Sam puts out a fire, he’s “a real hero.”

Not surprisingly, my son loves it when I tell him he’s a “really useful engine,” or better yet, he’s “my hero,” especially after he’s done something like clean up his toys, or occupies his baby sister with games and songs while I cook dinner. I’ve seen many lists with hundreds of ideas for words of affirmation we can use with our children, but I’ve found that affirming my child using words from my child’s world of favorite stories brings out the happiest response.

Thomas the Tank Engine

When it seems like his younger sister is getting a lot of attention, my husband uses words of affirmation to remind my son we haven’t forgotten about him. So, when little sister pulls herself up to stand, my husband will tell our son, “Look! Your little sister is trying to walk. Let’s help her,” and then they each take one of her hands to help her take some steps. That way, we acknowledge her milestone without forgetting her older brother still needs attention too. It’s very important to do this in a way that doesn’t sow jealousy between them, otherwise it will backfire.

A Teacher at Heart has a wonderful post about affirming children, and recommends that our words of affirmation are “exact, honest, and loving.” My favorite idea from that post: allow your children to hear you praying for them. What a wonderful way to show our children how much we love them – by letting them hear us pray to God for their health, their success, to help them get through their struggles … this I plan to do!

What are some ways you have affirmed your children?

Discovering My Town’s Treasures

By Phoebe Farag Mikhail

When I moved to the town I live in, a part of me was overwhelmed – the unpacking, the maintenance of a home, the unfamiliarity of a new locale. But a part of me was also excited to discover my new location and what it has to offer.  With many of us taking “staycations” instead of spending extra money to travel for vacations, it’s all the more important to get to know our towns. More than a year later, I’m still happily discovering, but here is how I’m learning so far:

1- I take walks with my kids (and wish I could do this more). One walk in April led us to a street lined cherry blossom trees – just when I was feeling nostalgic about them during my days in Washington, DC. We also found a beautiful school playground that is open to the public when school is out.

2- I chat with my neighbors. Walks, especially when the weather is good, lead to introductions to neighbors also enjoying the weather. Young children end up either starting the conversations, or are conversation starters. Neighbors help share the history and demography of the neighborhood. During those chats I discovered a local farm that offers pony rides for children in the fall, and that my town has a large Syrian population.

3- I visit the main streets. Despite the proximity of three huge malls to my area, the main streets are not dead. I discovered a fantastic Middle Eastern grocer (owned, of course, by a friendly Syrian woman) this way, an ice cream parlor, our local hardware store, a charity thrift shop reminiscent of London’s ubiquitous (and absolutely awesome) charity stores, a huge dollar store, and a coffee shop where the owners post inspirational quotes for people to read as they stand in line, waiting for their coffee.  

http://www.downtownayden.org/four-point-approach.html

4- I read the local newspaper that reports on my town. These newspapers often include information on the local weekly farmer’s market, events in the area, and local government and politics that directly affect us. I learned about children’s events sponsored by local churches through the local paper, and about the town-wide garage sale.

5- I visit the local public library. Public libraries are, thankfully, still very important to communities. At the library I’ve not only participated in library events, but also pick up the free local monthly magazines that provide events calendars, reviews of local restaurants, and other town tidbits. In one of those magazines, I learned about my local MOPS group, in another I found out about the annual touch-a-truck event for my toddler, and in another, I discovered a castle and waterfall that are only 20 minutes away!

6- I sign up for local blogs and newsletters. An internet search on my county and my town, as well as links and bloggers mentioned in the magazines I mentioned in #5, have helped me find numerous bloggers and websites that regularly post about events and happenings in my area. These post great reviews through their own experiences about area sites like museums and parks, giving me information I need to plan for those outings (like whether food is allowed, if strollers are allowed, etc.).

7- I sign up for local coupon sites. Sites like AmazonLocal, Plum District, LivingSocial and Groupon all share deals on local businesses based on zip code. With these I’ve found out about (and gotten great deals on) kids art classes, kids cooking classes, local indoor gyms, and other nearby services I would have otherwise not heard about. 

How have you discovered your town’s treasures? Please share your adventures in the comments: