JAK CHAT

Let's Hop To It! Compiled by  Just Add Kids'  Silva Karapetian Our Easter basket overfloweth! If you are looking for The Bunny, look no further. You've come to the right place. We hare you to find a more complete, interactive directory of places to go/things to do when it comes to celebrating the holiday with the Easter Bunny. And hey, not everybody is into the furry fella, so we've included some additional kid-oriented, family-friendly seasonal events, as well. Fun hop-portunities for you and your family are right here at your fingertips. Let's go! Come back often as we will add events here and on our website's calendar, JAK Happenings , as we learn about them. **DENOTES**activities and events that are designed for and/or welcoming to families of children/dependent young adults with special needs. Finding Easter Bunny! 2016 Directory (updated 3/26/2016) Sponsored by Educators Credit Union       BUNNY EVENTS: Easter Bunny Photo Experience Southridge Mall, Cent...

Welcome JAK-SKE! by Just Add Kids founder, Paula Herrmann Okay, so JAK-SKE isn't exactly new. Yet, if I asked for a show of hands as to how many of you know what JAK-SKE is, there'd be a majority of you who don't know. So, while JAK-SKE isn't a newborn, he/she's got a coming out, of sorts, to announce. Read more... First, for those of you who don't know what the what this JAK-SKE thing is all about, let me start there. JAK-SKE stands for Just Add Kids - Special Kids Edition . Oh yah, that's what that hard to read type says on the logo above ^^! We started with **'ing events in our JAK Happenings Calendar of Events . Those events are activities & events that are designed for and/or welcoming to families of children/dependent young adults with special needs. For instance, **Special Needs Family Day at Sealed Air YMCA** which we shall get to very soon in this blog post. Soon after that, we launched our JAK-SKE Facebook group whose mission is for its...

Teaching Your Child to Appreciate the Differences That Make People Special Reprinted from Prevention Services Network Family Resource Center Newsletter February 2016 Parents are uniquely positioned to guide their children to appreciate the differences that make each of us special. As a result of world events and heightened awareness of the relationship between bullying and school violence, there has been increased attention placed on the diversity that shapes the culture of the United States. Explaining diversity in a way that is understandable to children can be a challenging pro-cess.   Read more... Even when you have done your best to teach the importance of respect and treating others fairly, your child may still encounter hate and prejudice through the Internet and other forms of media, and even in their school or neighborhood. Teaching you child about appreciating diversity will help she/he do well in our diverse society, and promote good self-esteem and mental health. It's n...

You are what you wear. A Mom on a Mission! by Just Add Kids founder, Paula Herrmann Or is it, "you are what you eat"? Whatever. The title of this blog post will make sense in a minute. Honest to goodness, I've lived over a half a century now. Yah, I'm a mature, seasoned mom. I became a mom when I was 30. So, really, my day to day interactions with moms came about 20 years ago when I joined the ranks of parenthood. I don't know if anyone who never was/is a mom can really understand the dynamics of living that role.  It ain't an easy one. Sure, there are crappy moms who probably should've never given birth.   Read more... But, mostly, there are good moms, doing their best to do what's best for their child/children. And then there are the bomb diggeties. For the most part, I've been surrounded by those who are good. Then BAM!  A few years ago all of a sudden all of these super moms popped out of nowhere.  There's Colleen, there's Cindy, there...

Parenting Hacks and Bad Advice from  The World's Most Okayest Mom by Just Add Kids guest mom blogger, Kaia Beyer of Union Grove When my first baby was about three years old, I told him that sesame seeds were actually “muscles dots”.  I can clearly remember him unwrapping his cheeseburger from Burger King, and gasping, “What are those?? I can’t eat this!” That’s when, like a gift from above, it came to me: “Oh, Those! Those are special.  They are muscle dots.  If you eat them, you will grow gigantic muscles!  I’m surprised they even gave them to a kid! You are so lucky.  Now, eat it and see what happens!”  It was brilliant. One of my finer parenting moments, and it stuck- twelve years later, we still call them muscle dots. It got me thinking about all of the Mom Hacks (some of which may be teeny, tiny white lies) that I’ve discovered over the years that have made my life as a mom slightly easier.  Read more... Here are ten of my personal faves:  “You won’t believe this! Your Hallo...

In Memoriam by Just Add Kids Founder,  Paula Herrmann Life. It seems like in recent weeks, we've lost some very notable people. David Bowie, Glen Frey, and my friend Paul. Wait! You didn't know Paul? Had it not been for his untimely death, you likely would have. But then again, you may have been touched by his creative work and did not even know it. An amazing artist, born and raised right here in Kenosha, who had a vision to bring his talents and creativity (back) to you...parents and kids in southeastern Wisconsin and beyond!   Read more... Some people just make an impression on you from the get go. A cute, young family in church that is so well put together.  A Dad, a mom, a little girl, and toddler boy. Pretty ideal by our American standards! Collectively and individually they're able to light up the room. You know those folks. Dateline: April 5, 2014, we're at Case High School, it's the 5th Annual Just Add Kids EXPO! Paul tracks me down at the event singing the...

Awareness. Information. ACTION! by Just Add Kids Founder, Paula Herrmann Child Sex Trafficking. Just typing it almost makes me want to vomit. The industry of human sex trafficking, up until only over a year ago, was a reality I thought was only known in third world countries. The United States? Heck no. SE Wisconsin? Yah, right. (snicker). My eyes were opened upon a presentation and screening that I attended in which the subject dealt with the dangers of the internet as it relates to children (and the vulnerable). It's a freaking scary world out "there" for our kiddos. I know. Mine had been lured.   Read more... [caption id="attachment_4248" align="alignleft" width="470"] Source: Exploit No More Facebook page [/caption] My kids. Not your typical high risk target, you'd think. Internet predators scour through chat rooms (your kid's games/gaming devices have them) and social network sites looking for children.  They will build a relati...