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When the folks of a small town meet at the dance hall, fun is sure to ensue. 

Dance, Y'all Dance by Kelly Bennett is a wonderfully fun and funny picture book.  Come spend a Saturday night at the Horseshoe where young, old, great dancers and not all take a twirl on the shiny dance floor.  This tale is written in rhyme and flows along as perfectly as the...four turns and fast hands of Pistachio.

The illustrations by Terri Murphy are a perfect accompaniment to this delightful story - they're bright, bold and tell a whole story themselves!

Check out, Dance, Y'all, Dance on Kelly Bennett's web site, Amazon or Barnes & Noble

This is a must have for any youngster's bookshelf =)

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by Dr. Dolgoff

The U.S. National Library of Medicine estimates that at least one out of five children in the U.S. is overweight. There are several reasons why parents need be concerned over an overweight or obese child. Obese children and adolescents have shown an alarming increase in the incidence of type 2 diabetes, also known as adult-onset diabetes. Many obese children have high cholesterol and blood pressure levels, which are risk factors for heart disease. One of the most severe problems for obese children is sleep apnea (interrupted breathing while sleeping). In some cases this can lead to problems with learning and memory. In addition, obese children have a high incidence of orthopedic problems, liver disease, and asthma.

How to determine if your child is overweight or obese:

A doctor is the best person to determine whether your child has a weight problem. Doctors will measure your child’s weight, height, age and growth patterns to determine if his or her weight is within a healthy range. Based on your child’s height and weight, they will calculate a body mass index (BMI). If your child’s BMI is greater than 95 percent of children their age and gender, they are considered to be overweight.

Why children become overweight:

Genetic factors: Children become overweight for a variety of reasons. The most common causes are genetic factors, lack of physical activity, unhealthy eating patterns, or a combination of these factors. In rare cases, a medical problem, such as an endocrine disorder, may cause a child to become overweight. A careful physical exam and some blood tests will determine if your child is overweight due to this type of problem.

Children whose parents or brothers or sisters are overweight may be at an increased risk of becoming overweight themselves. However, not all children with a family history of obesity will be overweight. Genetic factors play a role in increasing the likelihood that a child will be overweight, but shared family behaviors such as eating and activity habits also greatly influence body weight.

Lifestyle: A child’s total diet and his or her activity level both play an important role in determining a child’s weight. The average American child spends approximately 24 hours each week watching television - time that could be spent in some sort of physical activity.

What parents can do to help:

Be supportive: Overweight children need support, acceptance, and encouragement from their parents. Children’s feelings about themselves often are based on their parents’ feelings about them. It is also important to talk to your children about weight, allowing them to share their concerns with you.

Don't use food as a punishment or reward: Withholding food as a punishment may lead children to worry that they will not get enough food which may result in overeating. When foods, such as sweets, are used as a reward, children may assume that these foods are better or more valuable than other foods. For example, telling children that they will get dessert if they eat all of their vegetables sends the wrong message about vegetables.

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5 Unexpected Things to Do with Your Kid’s Baby Teeth

The truth most parents aren’t willing to admit is that they likely toss out the baby teeth their kids hide under their pillow for the Tooth Fairy. So the folks at StemSave put together this list of five great things to do with teeth that will keep your kids healthy and happy in the future:

1. Bury your baby's teeth in a time capsule in the backyard. You can add other keepsakes, like a favorite t-shirt, toys, books or photos, so when your children grow up, they can remember those momentous occasions.

2. Make a baby book album with photos and … teeth. In addition to saving the first lock of hair, you can save the first tooth.

3. Get a "First Tooth" kit or porcelain tooth bank. Little girls love putting keepsakes in a jewelry box. Consider doing the same for them with a first tooth kit!

4. Get a Tooth Fairy pillow. These can be personalized for your child, boy or girl, with a discrete place to stash the tooth and a note to the tooth fairy. Just “Google” Tooth Fairy Pillow and you’ll find lots of great sources.

5. Preserve those baby teeth with a private bank where doctors and scientists can save the valuable stem cells from the tooth’s pulp. Many parents don’t realize that stem cells are in baby teeth and that you can store them for future use. It’s also a great second chance for parents who didn’t save their baby’s cord blood.


StemSave is the stem cell company that works with families, doctors and dentists to educate them about the opportunity of recovering stem cells from teeth. Scientists are making countless breakthroughs in stem cell research, doing everything from regenerating bones to muscle and nerve tissue. The implications for medical treatments are endless.


For more information, visit http://stemsave.com/.

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PORTABLE MEDICAL RECORDS MAKE HALLOWEEN SAFETY EASY FOR EMERGENCIES

Children can seldom speak for themselves in emergency situations and they usually cannot provide accurate medical information that is relevant to the emergency. The MedeDrive Bracelet contains your child’s emergency information (allergies, medications, blood type, etc.), medical and family contact information. In any type of emergency, this bracelet is easily recognized by law enforcement and medical personal.

“Most people think of Halloween as a time for fun and treats for children, but the fact is that Halloween-related injuries occur and often times end in tragedy,” said Kevin Hauser, CEO of Medefile.com.

"The MedeDrive Bracelet is a must for any child with a medical condition that emergency personnel should be aware of right away – like asthma, diabetes or serious drug/food allergies. If your children are out unaccompanied you would want them to receive proper care in the case of an emergency. A Medefile Bracelet can save a life."


Medefile.com’s primary mission is to provide individuals with the ability to have complete and secure access to their entire actual medical record 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from virtually anywhere in the world.

About MedeFile International, Inc.

Headquartered in South Florida, MedeFile has a proprietary system for gathering and digitizing medical records so that individuals can have a comprehensive record of all of their medical visits. MedeFile's primary product is the MedeFile system, a highly secure system for gathering and maintaining medical records. The MedeFile system is designed to gather all of its members' actual medical records and create a single, comprehensive medical record that is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about MedeFile and its annual subscription-based programs, please visit http://www.medefile.com/.

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Nito's day has finally come and all his training about to be put to good use when he meets Chloe - a disabled child in a wheelchair.

Nito helps Chloe find her clothes in the morning, goes to school and swimming therapy with her, as well as the grocery store and restaurant.  Nito even gets to ride on the ferris wheel.

Nito Meets Chloe written by Judith M. Newton is the second book in the three part series.  These books are based on actual assistance dogs and shows children how they are an important part of a disabled person's life.

Nito Meets Chloe is available at  Amazon.com or at; http://www.assistancedogsofthewest.org/

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We have Soccer Fever and we want to pass it around!

Are your kids’ huge soccer fans? Then send them over to Imagination-Café Magazine for a totally kickin’ contest.

From now until August 15, Imagination-café will be hosting the "Crazy for Soccer" contest with a soccer-rific giveaway kit from the Wild Soccer Bunch – an autographed replica soccer ball by Landon Donovan, (major league soccer player for the Los Angeles Galaxy), and a copy of The Wild Soccer Bunch middle grade novel.

Want to score big and join the fun?

Just bounce on over to Imagination-Café Magazine at; http://imagination-cafe.com/ and become a member of Klub Krumbs – it’s totally FREE. As an official member your kids are just a click away from the “Contests” area where they'll register to win.

That’s all!

Imagination-Café will do a random draw for the Landon Donovan Soccer Kit by midnight on August 15.

Good Luck!

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