Help your child be a superstar with Your Child's Strengths

At a young age, I became acutely aware that I was different.

I began reading at 2-1/2 with a bang, reading a billboard on the side of Route 46 and shocking my mother to the point where she almost drove off of the road.

By kindergarten, I was already reading books way beyond my years and was sent to the library during class time so I could read books and write little book reports while the rest of my classmates were learning the alphabet.

By sixth grade, I discovered quite by accident that I had scored extremely well on the IQ test given by the gifted and talented department, leaving the director scratching her head and wondering what to do with me.

I was really blessed with a wonderful group of teachers that encouraged me at every turn. Miss Coupian, my second grade teacher, planned a special curriculum for me focusing on one of my passions at the time - the exhibition of the relics from King Tut's tomb. I dove into it head first, devouring everything that I could get my hands on. My sixth grade English teacher, Mrs. Herman, also took a special interest in me and I blossomed in her hands. I was a top student, a mainstay on the honor roll, and active in all kinds of school activities.

And then, there was high school. I was weak in math, and although I was in the advanced math class I soon learned that because I wasn't one of the teacher's favorites (and honestly, if you weren't a boy on his soccer team you didn't make the cut) I was considered persona non grata. I wasn't the only one - we would raise our hands, ask questions, request meetings with Mr. Magliaro after school, and honestly it was like we were aliens from another planet to him. He just could not get us to understand trigonometry at all. I struggled that whole year, going through two tutors and barely passing the class. Until that point I had been more than adequate at math - but that year was enough to break my spirit. I pretty much lost all interest in anything but English class and skated through the last two years of school. I was done. I felt like a failure.

Reading the first few chapters of Your Child's Strengths by Jenifer Fox brought it all flooding back for me. I remembered all of the joy that I had in school when I had things to do that I was interested in - I seriously loved school and couldn't stand to miss a day. It was high school, when suddenly I was thrust into an unsupportive atmosphere, where I lost that passion for learning.

Jenifer Fox has been a teacher and administrator for over 25 years, and is currently head of the Purnell School in Pottersville, NJ. She embraces a theory called "The Strengths Movement," where an individual's strengths are embraced and developed instead of focusing on weaknesses. In the book, she discusses three main strengths - Activity Strengths, Relationship Strengths, and Learning Strengths. With the workbook activities within the book, the reader is given the tools to discover these strengths and learn how to use these strengths in daily life. By picking out these strengths, it helps us determine what path to help our children down to help them use the strengths to be successful individuals not only in school, but in their lives as well.

I strongly agreed with Fox's belief that the school systems of our country have moved so far into the "teach to test" grind thanks to the No Child Left Behind Act that we have put the blinders on and judge children by their success or failure on standardized tests. Children are so much more than bubbles on a test form, and not everyone is a good test-taker. Given the opportunity to explore their strengths, rather than keeping to the "straight and narrow" mandated by the American educational system, there is no telling what our children could learn and accomplish.

The information in Your Child's Strengths is extensive, almost to the point of being overwhelming - but I strongly encourage readers to stick it out, and break the book up into portions over a number of days versus trying to plow through it in one day. Jenifer Fox provides such great insights into the American educational system as well as ways to unleash your child's strengths that it's worth reading every word. And not only should parents read this book - but it should be required reading for all teachers as well. It's that good.

So what happened to to me, the brilliant child prodigy, you might ask? Well, after floundering through my first year of college, I took a little time off to work and then reenrolled in the local community college. It was there that I had two amazing professors - Mr. Rohrer, who made history come alive in a way that I didn't know that it could, and then an adjunct professor (whose name escapes me) who finally got that math portion of my brain to work again and I passed with an A. Me, an A! You don't know how badly I wanted to rub that in Mr. Magliaro's face. It was such an amazing feeling, and it inspired me to get my associates degree in Education and then continue on for a BA in English.

Yeah, I'm working in construction for a living...but you know the beauty of it all? About 80% of my job involves math. And it's all thanks to that teacher that finally cracked the case of the Math-Addled Brain.

Stop by Parent Bloggers Network and read the other reviews of Your Child's Strengths - and thanks to PBN for giving me the chance to review this book. Your Child's Strengths is available through Amazon, where you can also find a list of cities where Jenifer Fox will be stopping off on her book tour!

Discovering space with Discovery Channel Toys

We've had quite the frenzy of gift-receiving here in the Builder Mama household, what with Monkey Man celebrating the big "6" birthday recently. He got some really cool toys, things that make a boy's heart sing - monster trucks, Transformers, football gear just to name a small portion of the loot. Seriously, it looks like Toys R Us vomited in my house.

But even with all this wondrous splendor, what toy does he keep coming back to over and over? A brand new offering from Discovery Channel Toys called the Spark Talking Telescope.

Pretty snazzy looking, isn't it? Monkey Man was seriously foaming at the mouth as I was taking it out of the box. He could hardly wait to get started looking through it.

So what do you get with this Talking Telescope? Well, it starts with a series of flash cards that talk about space exploration. Then there are 20 slides with images provided by NASA that feature different elements of our solar system. And a parent-friendly "Lab Assistant" guide. And of course, this cool looking telescope. Oh, and did I mention that the slides can be stored in a tray in the base of the telescope, thus almost eliminating the possibility of lost slides? Ooooh yeah, that almost made me giddy with excitement.

But you know, you always think that things look cool straight out of the box. And haven't we all bought toys that we thought would be fantastic and educational, only to be sadly disappointed?

Well, this certainly is not the case with the Spark Talking Telescope. I was pleasantly surprised at how user-friendly it is, how packed with information it is, and how fun it is. The three of us - Monkey Man, the husband and I all played with it for a good hour the first night, taking turns changing out the slides and listening to the facts.

How it works is that each slide can be inserted into the telescope. Then you have a series of facts that you can scroll through as you look at the slide. The information is in snippets that can be replayed as many times as you want. What I liked is that it's all simple, concise information that is presented - not too much to be overwhelming to a child, but not dumbed down either. The focus is also adjustable so a child can see the slides well. And if your kid is really into it, there are quizzes available for them to try their skills with.

So Monkey Man and I have thought this was one of the coolest toys we've seen in a while. And even the husband, who knew I was working on this review, said he thought it was one of the best things that Monkey Man has. And considering the husband is a serious geek, that is high praise indeed.

Priced at $34.95, I think this would make a most excellent holiday gift or birthday present for the future scientist in your life. I'm planning on checking out some of the other products that Discovery Store offers, like the Spark Talking Microscope. It looks way cool, as did many of the other products that I saw in the complimentary catalog that was included in our telescope.

If you're interested in reviews of the microscope or to see what the other reviewers thought of the Spark Talking Telescope, stop on over at Parent Bloggers Network where the campaign is getting off to a great start!

Get a jump on things with JumpStart World

We are serious computer junkies in our house. Three of us, five computers. You do the math. When your six-year-old has his own laptop, that is serious business.

Monkey Man has so many more opportunities to learn about computers. From the time he was old enough to push a mouse around, The World's Most Expensive Preschool gave him "computer lab" time and he has really flourished. Heck, he can do stuff that even I can't do, and I'm not exactly a slouch in the computer department.

What's difficult is finding children's software that isn't just fun, but educational and also good quality. Enter JumpStart World and their great programs for Kindergarten, First Grade, and Second Grade.

We tried out the Kindergarten program. What you get is an "Adventure Pack" that has dozens of learning games and missions for kids to use. They work their way through the game - there are so many cool games to play with 3-D characters. Personally, I loved the characters - just cartoonish enough without being cheesy, no high-pitched annoying voices, and the encouragement that they offer (even when you're not doing so hot) is really important in getting kids hooked into staying with the game versus throwing their hands up in frustration. Kids work through the mission earning "prizes" and earning pieces to their "Friendship Badge". Pretty cool stuff.

As a parent, I also liked that I can stay in tune with exactly how Monkey Man is progressing by checking his progress that is automatically updated into the parental section. I can personalize it with his name, his birthday, photos, and the little avatar that represents him throughout the units. I was also able to go unit by unit and see exactly what was being covered - a little math, a little reading, and a little bit of brain-stretching critical thinking. That got big thumbs-up from me, because the kid gets seriously bored if it's "just" one thing that the program focuses on. Mix it up, and he's hooked.

So after I got to play with it a little bit (and realize that I am pathetic at computer games), I turned him loose with it.

He loved it. Even more than his beloved Kid Pix software which we've probably almost worn out. It wasn't so easy that he got bored, but not so hard that he got frustrated. And the true test? He is able to sit there for at least 30 minutes easily without me hearing a peep from him. And I know he's not just having a good time, but he's learning and reinforcing what he has learned all at the same time. Priceless.

The best part? The Kindergarten, First Grade, and Second Grade programs cost $19.99 each. Great stocking stuffers for the little brainiacs on your holiday shopping list. Not to mention you can also subscribe to their website to get new Adventure Packs. How cool is that? And if you want to give it a whirl, they offer a free trial.

Seriously, go give this a try because I think you and your kids will love it. Not to mention, how much will you love 30 minutes of peace and quiet knowing they're doing something good versus shaving the cat again? Exactly.

Read what other bloggers have to say about this and other exciting products over at Parent Bloggers Network!

Trick 'em with some treats - Deceptively Delicious

I wouldn't say that Monkey Man is the pickiest eater on the block - he eats more than just chicken nuggets and mac & cheese, but he's not exactly the most adventurous eater either. He has a few favorite veggies and unfortunately as we found out a few years ago, he's actually allergic to green beans (!) and navy beans - both of which were in the list of favorites. So sometimes it's a little struggle trying to get him to try new stuff. Every now and then I can make cheese sauce over steamed veggies, but isn't that kind of defeating the purpose of eating healthy veggies if you're going to drown them in cheese?

I love me a good cookbook, too. I have a pretty extensive collection of them and will sometimes spend an afternoon on the couch with a few of them looking for new things to try. Blame my mom for that, since she started me in the kitchen when I was old enough to stand up at the stove.

Parent Bloggers asked me if I'd be interested in checking out Jessica Seinfeld's new cookbook, Deceptively Delicious - and I thought it would not only feed my cookbook addiction, but also maybe give me some good ideas for other veggies to try with Monkey Man. I'm not exactly very adventurous in the veggie department myself, so I figured maybe this would be good for both of us.

The cookbook itself is adorable. Hard cover, spiral bound, and very pink. The pages are durable and probably wipable too (although thankfully I didn't have to test that part out). Jessica introduces her family, intersperses comments that are presumably from her kids as well as her husband Jerry (yes, that Jerry), and offers her own brand of advice when it comes to dealing with kids and their eating. There are great illustrations and photos throughout the cookbook and it's very visually appealing. I liked that part a lot.

The general idea of the book, if you haven't already heard all the buzz, is that she recommends using vegetable purees in recipes to boost the nutritional values of regular foods like macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, cheesesticks, and so on. Jessica collaborated not only with a chef, but also with a nutritionist to assemble the recipes. She goes step by step over what you need to prepare the vegetables, how to make the purees, what kind of equipment you need for the pureeing as well as any baking or cooking. It's really very thorough and I believe that anyone could successfully do it.

I decided that I'd put a few recipes to the test - nothing too complicated but something I could easily fix one night after work or on a weekend when we're running around like a bunch of maniacs. First, I tried the Pita Pizzas - I had some baby spinach that I had pureed the day before, so I was able to throw them together in just a few minutes. I liked that I could use things that I already had in my pantry - wheat pita bread, tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese along with the spinach puree. And you know, they were good and perfect for something like an afternoon snack or lunch when you're in a hurry and the kids are starving. You could probably jazz them up a bit by adding other toppings too if you wanted to.

The second thing that I tried was the recipe for Mozzarella Sticks. Yeah, I know, not the most gourmet recipe but Monkey Man adores them in restaurants so I figured why not. This used cauliflower puree as well as flaxseed meal and you also have the option of adding sesame seeds (which I left off since I don't like them). Well, he didn't care for the flaxseed meal on them, so I am going to try them again another time using just whole wheat breadcrumbs. So it wasn't a total flop, just a temporary setback.

The last thing were the Aloha Chicken Kebabs. Jessica recommends using sweet potato puree and pineapple puree - well, I didn't have any sweet potatoes on hand so I used all pineapple puree instead. I also, after the Mozzarella Stick Incident, left the flaxseed out and just stuck with the breadcrumbs. These were pretty tasty too - Monkey Man didn't care for the coconut but she suggests leaving it off if it's too objectionable. Personally, I liked these and they were pretty easy to fix.

I'm anxious to try a few more of these, especially the desserts. The chocolate chip cookie recipe incorporating chickpeas looks especially intriguing and I've heard raves about them - and who doesn't love a good cookie? So that's next on the list.


Seinfeld devotes quite a bit of space to nutritional information and the benefits of eating fruit and vegetables. One thing that I'd change, however, is to add a little more emphasis about actually serving fruits and veggies with these dishes and not just depending on the purees to meet the nutritional needs of your family. She does mention it briefly but I think it could be easily lost with all of the other eye-catching features of the cookbook.

Is Seinfeld's idea new? Nah, mothers have probably been sneaking healthy stuff into our food since the prehistoric era. But what she has done is incorporate some great ideas into a format that is visually appealing and full of enthusiasm.

Check out Deceptively Delicious for the picky eaters in your house!

Kids are Americans Too

I'm not what they would call a political zealot. I tend to lean a little more to the conservative side on economic issues, and more on the liberal side on social issues. I don't watch any of the political talk shows unless they just happen to be on when I'm channel surfing, and even then it's a very quick five-minute process.

I'm not a Bill O'Reilly fan, nor do I think he's the Devil incarnate either. I've watched him a few times, was mildly entertained, and moved on. So when Parent Bloggers Network asked me if I'd be interested in reviewing O'Reilly's latest book "Kids are Americans Too", I really wasn't sure what to expect.


I liked the general premise of the book, which is to teach kids about their rights. As O'Reilly puts it, if you look at modern-day society it's hard to believe how much things have changed since the Founding Fathers came up with the Declaration of Independence. As much as things have changed, though, our fundamental rights are still the same as they were over 200 years ago. And once you think about that, it's pretty cool. O'Reilly also discusses how sometimes an individual has to think about the "common good" versus what the individual's own interests are, and sometimes the common good has to outweigh that. He also discusses some court cases regarding kids' rights with varying degrees of success.


O'Reilly doesn't go into any serious depth about the Constitution, the government, or the Supreme Court with his aim to give kids a very broad overview of how our rights work without going into minute detail. I think that in his attempt to give an overview, however, he almost gives too little information.


But maybe that isn't such a bad thing in this case. Although O'Reilly comes out of the gate very strongly in the first few chapters and had me completely hooked into the premise of the book, by mid-way in the book I was pretty turned off. I really wanted to believe that O'Reilly would give fair and balanced coverage to the topics, however I was really disappointed when slowly but surely he started sneaking his own viewpoints into the book. By the end, I really got the impression that O'Reilly would be almost giddy if every kid that reads this book subscribed to his beliefs. Not to mention that he slipped in references to his talk show and other books that he has written, which I think really isn't appropriate to do in this type of book. Save the sales pitch for another audience, please.


My biggest beef with the book, however, was that I think it was dumbed down a lot. The writing style is very disjointed - now, I have never read any of O'Reilly's other works so I'm not sure if this was written to appeal to teens with "MTV brain" as I call it, or if this is his normal style. I think kids today are way smarter than he gives them credit for in the book and the style of writing. In addition, there were multiple parts in the book where I felt like O'Reilly was very patronizing toward the reader as if they weren't quite cool enough or smart enough to play in his sandbox. It's one thing to play Devil's Advocate in order to arouse interest in a topic that you're passionate about, but it's another thing to make the reader feel like a moron if they don't align with your viewpoints.


Overall, I think the idea of the book was great - I mean hey, don't we all want to know more about our rights and want our kids to know more too? However, I think O'Reilly's personal beliefs bleed into the book too much for it to be an impartial report on this topic. I'd really like to see this subject tackled for teens by someone who is a little more politically neutral rather than someone trying to covertly push their own personal agenda.

Printakid - magic you can definitely try at home

Have you ever ordered one of those personalized books as a gift for a child? I have. And I was sorely disappointed. Poor print quality, lackluster stories, and weakly-constructed books that wouldn't hold up to an adult's use, let alone a kid's use. Disappointing, to say the very least.

Enter Printakid. These personalized books for children not only met my expectations, but reached moon and stars beyond them. It was like magic!

Ordering one was as easy as pie. First, I went to the website and selected the story that I wanted. Themes ranged from "first day of school" to a Christmas story - I decided to go with the outer-space themed "The Robots of Sedna" since one of Monkey Man's favorite things is astronomy. Oh, and Star Wars. I figured it would be a win-win choice, even though all of the other book selections looked equally good.

Then came the personalizations. First, I got to dedicate the book and choose my own wording. Very cool. Then came turning Monkey Man into the hero of the story. I was able to choose his hair color, hair style, eye color, skin tone, if he wore glasses and what the shape of his glasses were (if he wore any). Then I put our names in there and was then able to choose the names of three of his friends that were then worked into the story.

So that was it. It took me a whopping ten minutes to put the order together. Now, all I had to do was wait for the book to come.

The day the book came, I sat down with Monkey Man and started reading the book to him. His eyes grew bigger and bigger...

"Hey, that's ME!" he shouted. And as we went through the story, he got more and more excited to see that not only was he the hero of the story, but his friends and Joey and I were in there too. He liked the book so much that every time we had people come over that week, he pulled it out and showed them the book, including my dad who got suckered into reading it at least four times the afternoon he was visiting.

Okay, so he liked it. But what did I think? Honestly, this is hands-down the best personalized book for children that I've ever seen. The illustrations are crisp, clear and colorful. The story is well-written and does a good job of making the "hero" feel very special. And the book's construction is sturdy - maybe not if you have a page-ripper lurking in your house, but it will definitely hold up to a lot of reading if treated in a normal wear-and-tear manner.

Printakid has done an awesome job in presenting a product that is not only easy to order, but a real kid-pleaser too. It's like magic, only the type that you can definitely try at home. Check out Printakid and see what kind of magic you can conjure up for the special kids in your life!

Sweet on your feet - The Ryka MC2 Walk

I can't remember who it was one time that told me they weren't built for speed, but to go slow and steady. Well, that's me.

I've done a few 10K races - running part and walking part. Honestly, the running is kind of like torture. Unlike some of my friends who love to run, I'd just as soon skip that part. I'm like the Little Engine that Could - I just chug along.

A few months ago, I got an email from Parent Bloggers Network asking if I'd be interested in reviewing some fitness gear. Little did I know what little gem would be showing up on my doorstep - some awesome shoes from Ryka.

Behold, the mighty MC2 Walk. Ain't it purty?





















Ryka makes all of their gear specifically for women. And while I've always been kind of a shoe snob - mostly due to design issues and my pesky achilles tendon that seems to rub on 99.9% of the shoes that I try - I was eager to try the MC2 Walk. I already had a few of their shirts that I loved, so why wouldn't I love the shoes too?

Well, I have to admit that at first I put them on...and I didn't like them so much. I believe the predominant thought running through my head was OUCH. So I wore them around the house a few hours and - well - I started to like them. Really like them. Like skipping around the house like them. Like finally having to take them off because athletic shoes don't really go with my pajamas. That's how much I liked them.

It does take a little getting used to if you're used to either running shoes or cross-trainers like I am - the fit is definitely snugger but it gives great support. The MC2 Walk fits your heel so you don't get that pesky slippage - which would probably help women with narrow heels that have such a hard time finding athletic shoes that fit. Ryka calls that "True Motion Control" - and they really deliver. It offers great stability, especially when walking outside where they handle rough sidewalks and uneven pavement like a champ.

As I mentioned earlier, one of my biggest problems with athletic shoes is that my achilles tendon tends to rub on most athetic shoes out there. The MC2 Walk's upper heel isn't cut down as low as my old shoes, but I found that as long as I wore good quality socks that weren't cut too low that I didn't have that problem. The only time I had an issue with the MC2 Walk rubbing my heel was when I stupidly put on a pair of extra-low cut socks - and it wasn't the shoe that left a teeny blister, it was the elastic on the sock. Color me happy! I had one pair of the "swoosh" shoes that I ended up giving away because no matter what I did, the stupid things rubbed my heels raw.

Overall, I was very pleased with my MC2 Walk shoes - inside on the treadmill, outside on the street, and running errands, they held up to the abuse that I regularly dish out to my footwear. I'm hoping that once I run these into the ground, I'll find a different model of Ryka shoes to try since they have a really good selection for walking and running.

Now through the end of October, register with Ryka's Good for Your Sole campaign and you have the chance of winning some awesome gear - Ryka is giving away 50 pairs of shoes and 50 performance tees every single day plus they are donating one pair of shoes for every pair given away to the Women's Sports Foundation for distribution across the country to women in health and wellness programs. How cool is that?