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Back to School
First Day Jitters
Reading with children is a wonderful way to introduce them to new ideas and the first day of school is no exception to this. You’ll find many books at your local library that deal with the emotions and excitement of going to school for the first time. We’ve even listed a few of our own favorites right below this article. Reading about other youngsters who are going through the same experience will allow your child to adapt to the idea and give you a place to start a casual conversation about how they are feeling about the upcoming first day. This next tip can also flow naturally from the conversation that reading a book together starts: sharing your own experiences with school. Be sure to concentrate on the positive aspects of meeting new friends and learning fun things. Knowing that they are following in Mommy and Daddy’s footsteps as they go off on their first day can help your child feel more confident and is a wonderful way for parents to bond with their children over a shared experience. Another way to ease the transition to school is to visit the place where they’ll be spending a good portion of their days. If you’ll be walking them all the way to school, take the time to make the trip a week or so before they start to point out the building and where their classroom will be. Doing this once or twice will make the walk on the big day seem less intimidating. Some schools even offer an orientation program that can help make the building feel a bit more familiar on that first day. Check to see if this is something your school will be offering. If your child will be taking a bus, explain this process to them and be sure to visit the bus stop where they will meet the bus. Take the time to take a drive along the bus route and point out interesting landmarks they can watch for, both on the way to and home from school. The more you expose them to the experience, the less frightening it will be when the day arrives. On the big day, remember that your child will watch you for clues as to how to react and echo your emotions. We have heard several stories about excited children consoling their parents on the first day! If you do tend to be emotional, be aware of this and do not linger too long over the goodbye. Lingering or rushing back for “one last” hug will only make the transition harder on both of you and possibly frighten your child. Remaining calm yourself is extra important if your child begins to react to the separation with tears. Remember that this is a natural reaction for some children in their age range. Remind them that the separation will only be for a few hours and be sure to promise that you will see them when the school day is over. Let them know how excited you are that they are taking this big step in growing up. The above tips will help your child deal with the transition, but, as we note above, some parents feel a little of their own separation anxiety; especially those of us who are stay-at-home parents. Your child’s first day of school is a great opportunity to treat yourself to lunch with a good friend or indulge in your favorite hobby. Doing things you would not normally get to do with an active child to watch over will make these new hours alone less stressful. At the end of the day, be sure to talk to your children about how the day went and listen to what they have to say. This is a great opportunity to address concerns they may have about how things went and help them think of ways to make the second day a little bit easier too! First Day Booklist
The Berenstain Bears Go To School Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten Sam and Gram and the First Day of School The Night Before Kindergarten D.W.’s Guide To Preschool Featured ProductsProGrade™ Tri-Scan™ Thermometer
The ProGrade™ Tri-Scan™ Thermometer by Safety 1st® is an essential tool for any household. It not only gives a quick and easy 1-second reading of your child's temperature, but also allows you to check the temperature of food, formula and baths to make sure they're just right! Click here for more information. Available at Target and online at www.target.com. AdapTable High Chair 
The Safety 1st® AdapTable High Chair will fit right into your home. With 6 different heights, a 4-position tray and 3 different recline positions, it's easy to adapt this high chair to the best feeding position for your little one, whether they’re a newborn, growing baby or toddler. The high chair also features our SlideGuard™ post to help prevent your baby from slipping during feeding time. With the dishwasher-safe insert tray and machine washable seat cushion, the cleanup for this high chair is easier than getting your little one to eat strained peas! Click here for more information. Available at selected Walmart stores and online at www.walmart.com. Jaunt™ Travel System 
The Safety 1st® Jaunt™ Travel System will get you and your little one around in comfort and style. The stroller features a handy parent tray with cup holder, covered storage and easy headphone cord access. The canopy with peek-a-boo window lets you keep an eye on your little one during your walks together. With the included infant car seat, transitioning from car to stroller and back again is easier on you and more pleasant for your baby since you won’t have to disturb her in order to make the switch. With the stroller's convenient 1-hand, stand-alone fold, storage is easy when you've finished your day's travels. Click here for more information. Available at Babies“R”Us stores. Travel Ease™ Deluxe Play Yard 
The Safety 1st® Travel Ease™ Deluxe Play Yard makes traveling a breeze for you and your little one. The compact folding design allows you to easily take it from place to place, whether you're going to visit the grandparents or just transitioning from the nursery to the living room. With an elevated, easy-reach changing table, storage shelf and full-size bassinet, it has all the options you want in a play yard. Click here for more information. Available at Target and online at www.target.com. Gentle Vibes Nail Filer 
The ProGrade™ Gentle Vibes Nail Filer by Safety 1st® offers a faster alternative to nail clipping. It features an easy grip handle and the file head never needs to be replaced. Add in the cordless operation and nail filing has never been easier! Click here for more information. Available at Target and online at www.target.com. Available online at www.sears.com. Available at Babies“R”Us stores. Congratulations to Last Month’s Winners!Each winner will receive one of our fantastic Safety 1st® Nature Next™ Bio-Plastic Step Stools! Click here to check them out and buy one! Pauline Miller Jennifer Roberts Megan Varao Brenda Espinosa Spotlight on The Ristuccia’s
John and Maria’s son is also named John, but he does not have a Junior or a number attached. The older John explained this to us. “He is the fourth generation John Ristuccia, all with different middle names. I wanted to choose a middle name that started with “P” so that we could call him JP, but this was quickly vetoed by Maria. So now he’s Johnny, sometimes Johnny Bananas, and, at nighttime, Johnny Pajamas.” We asked what the family was doing to get ready for the new baby and John let us know, “We got the obligatory mini-van as soon as we saw the first ultrasound! This week, Johnny gets to move into his new “Big Boy” room, as the new baby gets dibs on the nursery. We didn’t know if Johnny was going to be a girl or boy, and don’t know about this baby either. The nursery is already gender-neutral, and Johnny is out-growing his Jungle Room and is ready for Cars and Planes. Getting Johnny’s new room ready has continued the never-ending list of around-the-house projects.” We wondered how the soon-to-be older brother was reacting to the subtle changes going on around him and the expectant parents told a story that may sound familiar to some of our readers. “Johnny has a “Baby” doll that he practices being gentle with. He’s so little that he wouldn’t understand the concept of “sibling” even if we tried explaining it. Right now we’re working on teaching him body parts, and he’s very curious about Mommy’s ever-expanding “Belly.” He’ll often walk up to her, lift up her shirt, and give the belly hugs and kisses, so maybe he knows more than we give him credit for!” When asked about potential names, John and Maria shared an idea that might appeal to other expectant parents out there. “Still working on it, but even when we’ve picked them, we won’t share. If we don’t tell people what we’ll name the baby, then we won’t get unwanted opinions and critiques. No one criticizes a baby’s name once it’s born…not to the parents anyway!” Of course, we wanted to know which of our company’s products John and Maria have found useful with Johnny and are hoping to use with the new baby as well. “One of our favorite products is the Quinny® stroller. We love it, onlookers love it, and Johnny loves it. We love the maneuverability, the public loves the look and design, and Johnny loves to climb into it and pretend it’s a go-kart when it’s folded down! Also, the Recline & Grow 5-Stage Feeding Seat and High-Def Digital Monitor have both become necessary staples of daily life.” We wish John, Maria and little Johnny a relaxing end of their summer and look forward to hearing more about the new baby when September arrives. If you have any questions regarding Safety 1st® products please contact Dorel Juvenile Group Consumer Relations at consumer@djgusa.com. Top |
August 2009
Summer is still in full swing, but there are only a few weeks left before school starts up again! This is an exciting moment for first timers, but can also cause a bit of angst for children and parents alike. This month, we give you an article with some helpful hints on how to reduce that first-day-of-school anxiety and list out some of our favorite get-ready-for-school books. We are pleased to announce the launch of our Tri-Scan Thermometer this month and will showcase it as one of our featured products. Be sure to enter in your name for a chance to win one for your own family! We’ll finish things up this month by shining the spotlight on a Safety 1st dad and his growing family.
The first day of school is an exciting time, but it can also bring up feelings of trepidation …for children and parents alike. The following are some helpful hints we gathered together that can help make the transition easier all around.
Doing an internet search for first-day of-school books brings up a huge number of choices, so we thought it would be nice to list some of our top favorites here for you to check out from the local library. Try them out there first, but if your little one demands repeated readings, it may be time to invest in a copy of your own! 
This month we turned the spotlight on Safety 1st® Project Director John Ristuccia and his family. John and his wife Maria already have a son who is 15 months old and are getting ready for a new baby at the end of September.