Raising Emotionally and Socially Healthy Kids

An On-Call Therapist at Your Fingertips

If you have a child in your house, "Raising Emotionally and Socially Healthy Kids" by Dr. Eileen Kennedy Moore needs to be on your bookshelf.  If you can purchase just one item to enhance your parenting this year, this may well be it! This is about as close as you can get to having a therapist on-call as you raise your kids.

You Just Never Know

When you are raising children, you just never know what you are going to come up against.  Some things are pretty standard, and some things may seem insurmountable when you stand face to face with a child whose feelings are bigger than they are.  It may feel overwhelming at times.  No longer does that have to be the case, when you can access expert information from "Raising Emotionally and Socially Healthy Kids".

Here's a Sneak Peek 

You can get a feel for what you'll learn in this course right here:

The best news: It's on sale NOW for 70% off when you purchase HERE.
This price is good until Jan. 31, 2015
If you miss this sale, check back again in a month or two. 
It will be on sale about five times during the year. 
You can also write to Dr. Kennedy-Moore via her website, 
www.EileenKennedyMoore.com, 
if you'd like to be notified when the course goes on sale.

You can also find a set of three preview videos on Dr. Kennedy-Moore's site.

What's Included 

There's something for every stage of development in this package. The course is available in DVD, CD, video download, or audio download formats. Inside every set, you'll find the DVD with 12 topics (30 minutes of video each), totaling 6 hours of content, along with a book that has each chapter broken down by topic.  That provides you with a handy reference that you can either watch, listen to, read or all of the above.  This is the whole "therapist at your fingertips" notion we referred to earlier.

Here's the list of topics included on the DVD and in the book:

Raising Emotionally and Socially Healthy Kids

(12 half-hour video or audio recordings)

1. Developing Your Child’s Emotional Intelligence

2. Anxiety—The Way Out Is Through

3. How Kids Manage Anger—Positive Discipline

4. Building Authentic Self-Esteem

5. Empathy—The Roots of Empathy

6. What Makes Kids Happy?

7. How Children Make Friends

8. Playing Well with Others

9. Making Up and Breaking Up with Friends

10. Belonging, Status, Popularity, and Rejection

11 Teasing and Bullying

12. Growing up Social in the Digital Age

What One Reviewer Said

"My son is 8 and going through a totally different stage that what I am used to with him.  I believe this video will be perfect for my family.  I love learning all I can about how to raise healthy and happy children."

See? At any age or stage, the content delivered up in this DVD will be a game-changer.

You're Going to Love It

What sets this course apart from so many that you'll find out there, is that Dr. Kennedy-Moore has taken big psychological concepts and translated them into bite-sized, digestible pieces for all of us. Like a friendly next door neighbor (who happens to be an expert), Dr. Kennedy-Moore will have you handling even the trickiest parenting issues with confidence. You're going to love it!

Dr. Eileen Kennedy Moore

Psychologist/Author/Mom of Four

Welcome, Again!

Dr. Kennedy-Moore is no stranger to the Kidlutions Preferred Product Awards, having garnered an award for both What About Me: 12 Ways to Get Your Parents' Attention without Hitting Your Sister and Smart Parenting for Smart Kids in the past.

Welcome back, Dr. Kennedy Moore.  The consistent quality and user-friendly approach you use makes you a fan favorite

Kimochis: Plush Toys with a Purpose!

Feelings can be messy...Kimochis can help!

If I told you that you could raise your child to be happy and successful, and that it could be as simple as having them play with a plush toy, you might raise an eyebrow. Initially, that is! Because once you see and experience Kimochis, you will see exactly what I mean.

My heart skipped a beat when I was first introduced to Kimochis about a year ago. I was thrilled when the creators submitted them for our award. It didn’t take long for our reviewers to see that Kimochis and our Preferred Product Awards went together like PB&J.

Kimochis (KEY.MO.CHEES), which means “feeling” in Japanese, is the name given to these whimsical plush creatures, which do more than just look cute and colorful on your child’s bed or shelf. They are so much more than plush toys. In fact, they are plush toys with a purpose!

It’s all about the feelings. Being able to identify them in ourselves and others is a critical life skill. Moreover, being able to cope with those feelings, manage intense and uncomfortable feelings and having the confidence to handle whatever problems come our way, are the things that great lives are built upon.


An example of some of the feelings in the "mixed feelings" bag.

Kimochis help with all of the above in a way that is accessible and FUN for young children. Often, you will hear parents or caregivers say, “Use your words”, when trying to assist a child in communicating about intense emotions. Kimochis actually give your kids the feeling words to use.

Kimochis come with three feelings face pillows, that have the feeling written on the back. More available for purchase.  In the extra kits, there is a blank pillow and a marker, for your child to be able to talk about and deal with whatever feeling may be pressing at the moment!

More examples of feeling pillows!

They also come with an incredible 48 page “Kimochis Feel Guide”, which is an incredible resource when it comes to creative uses of the Kimochis plush toy and feelings. (Seriously folks, this “Feel Guide” alone is golden!)

Kimochis is all about the business of helping your kids manage feelings in socially acceptable ways. Only they make it fun, memorable and upbeat!  Don't think these will just benefit the kids, though.  Better communication about feeling benefits us all!

Welcome to the Kidlutions Preferred Product Award family, Kimochis!  So glad you have joined us!



Worry Woos™: Monsters that Matter!

Emotions can swirl up inside of kids and cause upsetting and confusing times. Frequently, kids may feel as if they are the only ones experiencing certain problems. With few life experiences and limited coping skills from which to draw, kids can become overwhelmed with it all.

Enter the Worry Woos™ ! Like a fairy godmother with a magic wand, the Worry Woos™ have the power to change things!

Never before have such cuddly charmers warmed their way into the hearts of both kids and adults, creating clarity during uncertain times, a safe harbor in which to explore and contemplate some common, yet perplexing concerns. The Worry Woos™ are an ingenious answer to all of the above. They are the spectacular creation of Andi Green, a woman who is clearly no stranger to the social-emotional realm.

With great aplomb, Ms. Green tackles issues with friendship and loneliness, feeling confident and accepting of personal differences, as well as feeling brave, courageous and secure in oneself. The Worry Woos™ themselves are endearing plush figures. They are as unique as the stories that go with them. The approach is magical and the text is lyrical. Ms. Green's illustrations in the hardcover books seem to come alive as you are reading them. The rhyming text flows beautifully and slips under the radar of even the most skeptical kids, and touches their hearts in a way that will change them forever.

There is a Worry Woo™ for everyone. Worry Woos™ belong in the hands of every child, parent, teacher, counselor, therapist and human being. I wouldn't limit the Worry Woos(tm) as a product for only young children, either. I see their applicability to tweens, teens and yes, even adults. The stories are powerful and non-preachy. They get their point across and the story stays with the reader long after the book is put down.

So, without further ado, I give you Rue:

Rue is lovely and perfect just the way he is. Problem is, he doesn't know it. It takes him awhile to see and embrace his uniqueness, and yes, to even celebrate it. Rue's one-of-a-kind story is "The Nose That Didn't Fit". This book and plush would be perfect for any child, tween, teen or adult grappling with a physical feature of their own that sets them apart from others, makes them unique or different. Actually, this set would be good for any youngster at all. This is true because oftentimes, kids will struggle in silence about something that they feel makes them "different".

Next, take a peek at Squeek:

Squeek will waste no time making fast friends with whomever encounters him. In true Worry Woos™ fashion, he is charming and non-threatening. Squeek shows kids and others how to break free of self-imposed limits, how to let go of whatever they have allowed to hold them back and to SOAR! Squeek's story is titled, "The Monster in the Bubble", and it is highly recommended for kids who may be dealing with fears and anxiety. It's true that the book and plush would also benefit, well, just about anyone who picked it up and read it!

Finally, let's say hola to Nola:

Nola struggles with loneliness in her book, “The Lonely Little Monster”. She shows all of us how to look around and see that what we are searching for may be right under our noses. Lessons are woven throughout the fabric of the story with multiple layers. I read the book several times and could find new meaning each time. The same is true of all of the Worry Woos™ books I read.

We are so proud to have the Worry Woos™ as part of our Kidlutions Preferred Product Award™  family. The books and plush characters embody everything that this award stands for...helping kids cope, handle feelings, and succeed! Congratulations Worry Woos™ and we look forward to seeing all of your future endeavors!

For the rest of you, my wish is that you, too, find a way to embrace your inner Woo!

.

Grow Good Kids with Bingzy and Bing Note Products!

Oh, that every school child would know the likes of Bingzy!

Bingzy, the fun-loving character for Bing Note’s series on social and emotional development will warm his way into every child’s heart as he teaches important social-emotional skills to the PreK-Second Grade crew. Early childhood is a key time to begin intentionally teaching these concepts and Bingzy does it in a way that is non-threatening, fun and easy to remember. Those factors all add up to some incredible products…worthy of the Kidlutions Preferred Product Award.

We test-drove the “That’s BINGZY! Let’s Talk About It Discuss & Do Activities” and “That’s BINGZY! Busy Building Self-Esteem: Sing with Me - Book & CD” and WOW, we can’t say enough good things about them!

It’s one thing to tell a child, “Be nice, play fair,” or “Believe in yourself, you can do it,” and an entirely different thing to SHOW them how to do it. Bing Note products and BINGZY do that in spades. With activities, worksheets, talking points, a story and songs, these products cant help but grow good kids!

There are many, many curriculums out there for which you can pay hundreds of dollars to teach kids social-emotional skills. What we like about this workbook and story/songbook, is that it is accessible to both teachers for classroom and daycare use, as well as to parents for home use. It can be used with ease in all types of settings.

The website for Bing Note shares the following:

"Bingzy! Let’s Talk About It – Discuss & Do Activities" and "Bingzy! Picture Book & CD" helps kids become:

STRONG, POWERFUL, HEALTHY, LOVING, HARMONIOUS, CREATIVE, SUCCESSFUL, AND HAPPY.

According to Bing Note’s website:

The activities were created by a group of experienced teachers who have taught children for numerous years. These activities have proven to be effective learning tools in the classroom, in small group settings, and one-on-one.

Includes 48 activities plus additional discussion questions.
Developed by award-winning teachers!
Grades PreK – 2

Some of the topics include:
Feeling Discouraged: Keep Trying – I AM STRONG
Gaining Knowledge Through Reading – I AM POWERFUL
Learning The Food Groups – I AM HEALTHY
Giving Gifts From The Heart – I AM LOVING
Including Others At Playtime – I AM HARMONIOUS
Recycling:Other Uses For Plastic Water Bottles – I AM CREATIVE
Starting The Day Being Organized – I AM SUCCESSFUL
Helping Others Makes You Happy – I AM HAPPY

With Bingzy and Bing Note Products, you’ll get a surefire way to help your children develop crucial social-emotional skills. And you’ll do it for a most reasonable price.

Find the Bing Note crew around the web at:

Bing Note Website - Be sure to visit for some great printables on all things self-esteem related!
Twitter - Sweet tweets by the Bing Note gang
Facebook - Fun, fast, easy tips to grow good kids!

Congratulations, Bing Note and welcome to the Kidlutions Preferred Product Award family! We’re so happy to have you aboard!

Personal Child Stories...as unique as your child

Shara Lawrence-Weiss

Founder, Personal Child Stories

http://www.personalchildstories.com/

Personal Child Stories. The name is self-explanatory. The result is simply amazing. These books are so personalized that you would think that Shara Lawrence-Weiss, the creator of PCS, knows each of the children for whom she writes the books.  Clearly, she does her homework when it comes to their creation.

The stories are creative and the prose is catchy. Each book stars your child as the main character, with a storyline that relates to whatever you wish. PCS books can assist you in helping your child adjust to any number of transitions:

~ a new sibling
~ preparing for surgery or other medical procedures
~ understanding death
~ behavioral issues
~ coping with divorce
~ dealing with moving
~ special needs of any sort
~ being a sibling of a special needs child
~ or any other issue that you are helping your child tackle

PCS, the brainchild of Lawrence-Weiss, grew out of a very personal need to help her own child cope with a medically-related issue. You can read about it here.

The books are child-proof and virtually indestructible. They are ring-bound, laminated and very sturdy. They can be written on and easily wiped off.  That makes them even more perfect than traditional "paper" books.

While holding these books in my hands to review, I could almost feel the love that was poured into them. REALLY! They were sweet, with a very powerful message.

PCS books build self-esteem, encourage social and emotional development and help kids solve problems. With your child as the main character, a PCS book is sure to become one of his or her favorite reads. 

To get a glimpse at just how well-crafted these books are, take a peek at one of my faves. It’s a bittersweet memoir of a little girl’s beloved dog. Be sure to get the tissues…you’ve been warned.  After viewing this, and others available on the PCS site, you'll see why they were a natural for the Kidlutions Preferred Product Award.
You can also see a short video of a child reading her own PCS book, too:

While the books I reviewed were created for younger children, I personally witnessed an almost 10-year-old and a 12-year-old enthralled with them.  (Note that the books were not even about them...they featured other children.) Following is a conversation between the two kids that I overheard,  "Wow.  How cool is that?  These are neat!"  "I know, I really like these!"

These books are more than books, they are treasures...and because they are so durable, they are also family heirlooms.  You won't find 'em in a store, though...you'll only find them at Personal Child Stories.

Cheryl Melody Changes the World One Note at a Time...

For over 25 years singer/songwriter Cheryl Melody, B.M.ED., MA, has been bringing music to life. Melody, as she is known by her friends, is filled with both passion and compassion, which seems to come through each note of her music. Cheryl's music has garnered a Kidlutions Preferred Product Award for two sets of three CD's.

The first set includes (for early childhood):

Let's Pretend and More (Ages 4-7)
Songs that Make the Heart Feel Good (2-8...and for those young at heart)
Peek-a-Boo, I Love You (Birth - age 5)

These CD's boast a broad range of offerings, with an upbeat mix of both songs and stories. Some songs are classics and some are Melody's own creations. She includes a beautiful blend of mulitcultural songs from around the world, that can provide a wonderful conduit for a child's imagination. No matter which of these CD's you purchase (or better yet, if you get all three), you can be sure that you are buying a product that will bolster your child's self-esteem, nurture their hearts, improve their social and listening skills and enhance their creativity. Melody even teaches kids how to be their own best friend.

A bonus is the foot stomping, hand clapping, finger tapping, singing, dancing good time that is guaranteed in all of Melody's works. These songs have far reaching effects...and will stay with your child for years to come. One child who listened to these CDs at bedtime as a preschooler at the age of 4, still remembers the lyrics to many of the songs as a fourth-grader. Now that's staying power.

The second set includes (for elementary aged up):

Friends Forever (ages 4/5-grade 2/3)
Celebrate (Ages 5-adults)
World Peace: The Children's Dream (Ages 5-10)

In this set of CD's, Melody conquers some big issues, such as character-building, self-respect, respect for others, bullying, conflict-resolution, anti-bias, world peace and more. All of this is handled in a way that is accessible to young people and helps them think about the impact they have on others, as well as the difference they can make. These CD's empower kids to make good choices and to be "change-makers".

Once the CDs are purchased, some of the CD's have FREE downloadable lyrics, lesson plans and MORE that complement the music and stories.


Melody's life's work has been to teach others a kinder, more gentle way of being in this world. It is fascinating to read her life's story, which will give you more insight into the driving force behind the music and the message. Visit her site to learn more.

Congratulations, Melody, on your award-winning products.