Help! My Daughter Refuses To Use Toothpaste

Just because a child doesn’t like one type of toothpaste doesn’t mean she’ll refuse them all. Many kids hate the minty taste of traditional adult toothpastes — but might love a berry or bubblegum flavor.

By five or six, kids should be able to spit out the foam rather than swallow it. If your daughter hasn’t mastered this skill yet, teaching her how to do so can make brushing more pleasant for both of you.

If your daughter still refuses to use toothpaste, have her brush with a wet toothbrush and no paste, and then follow up with a fluoride rinse. Many studies prove that topical fluoride helps prevent cavities, so this step is critical if she’s not using toothpaste that contains fluoride.

Even though your daughter probably still has mostly baby teeth, keeping them healthy is essential. If she loses them too early because of excessive decay, her permanent teeth can drift, which increases the odds that she’ll need orthodontia. Instilling good oral hygiene habits early will benefit her for the rest of her life.

Top 10 Things A New Mother Must Know

Here are the top things every new mother should know:

1. Don’t let the baby eat dirt
   (If the baby poops green…don’t worry)
2. Don’t let the baby eat grass
3. If the baby screams when you take away the bottle, chances are you didn’t put enough rum in it
4. Should a rash develop, have yourself checked out immediately
5. Mother in laws who think you are incompetent give helpful advice can become clumsy around this oughta take care of the old bat accidental kitchen spills
6. Teething is normal. Stay away from baby if urge continues
7. Don’t try to pawn the gas smell on the baby. We all know it was you
8. Mothers and fathers do things differently and that’s o.k. The baby will grow up to know the truth love you both and realize that you are always there for them I do way more
9. Sucking snot out of baby’s noise is to be expected. Using a straw is not.
10. If screaming and crying persist, go into another room or you will wake the baby

Preparing Our Kids for Global Digital Citizenship Success

We’ve all heard how our world is getting smaller – how our digital connectivity is conquering distance and outpacing time. But how does this closeness shape the way we interact with each other? More importantly, how does it affect our youth?

This is the reality: The way young people socialize online deeply affects the relationships they have with themselves and the people around them. We have to acknowledge that our kids meet and connect emotionally through their digital devices. They cultivate relationships through a number of virtual world connections – by joining social networks and receiving status updates; building lists of friends and groups; and receiving IMs, texts and video messages.

After hearing countless news stories about identity theft, sexting and cyberbullying, we’ve made the frightening discovery that sometimes wires and signals can separate actions from consequences. And we’ve seen our children’s misguided belief in anonymity slink in easy as pie and place their security, reputations and lives at risk.

But things are changing. Media literacy and global digital citizenship are quickly becoming the key issues in education and law enforcement. Dialogue surrounding the consumption and production of information across connected technologies is growing at a heartwarming rate.

And leaders are working alongside students, using their experience with the Internet, cell phones, MP3 players and gaming devices to create a framework around kids and teens worldwide successfully learning how to be good to each other while engaging in new media activities.

Twenty years ago, good citizenship took place in the microcosm of the classroom and was simply rewarded with a certificate. Today, with its millennial twist, global digital citizenship reaches far beyond the playground fence. Its stewards are enriched with a much deeper understanding of how their actions affect their own lives as well as those of their peers, at home and around the world.

That’s why students must take an active role in identifying and establishing ethical digital use. They need to be involved in the critical thinking and policy creation that affects ultimate change. It’s called buy-in, and these days our savvy students require it if they’ll be expected to have a healthy relationship with technology.

Defining successful global digital citizenship matters to all of us because it profoundly touches our youngest technocrats. Although they are swift enough to sync their social media profiles on their cells, they may not be equipped to handle the overwhelming cyber situations that erupt from uniformed decisions.

We all want to keep our kids safe, but that won’t happen if we create barriers and block device usage. It is only when we empower them to explore their connected world that they will be keyed into the pitfalls and advantages of social navigation across all platforms.

Braces for Your Child: A Life Changing Decision

We understand that getting braces is a really big decision. Your dentist or orthodontist will walk you through your options carefully and help you determine what the best type of treatment is for your individual child’s needs. When you consider braces for your child, you are making a decision that will change his or her life forever.

Starting young can give you some of the following benefits:

• Correct detrimental habits such as tongue thrusting or thumb sucking
• Decrease the need for oral surgery and even extractions of adult teeth
• Improve your child’s face and smile while decreasing their insecurities
• Help to improve their speech and or the way their lips fit together
• Simplify and shorten the length of orthodontic treatment
• Help disrupt jaw growth issues or damage to the jaw joints

These are just a few of the benefits to starting orthodontics young. Often teenagers develop a resistance to orthodontic treatment due to the appearance as well so starting your child at a young age will help them comply with treatment.

Some kids just can’t wait to get braces while others are a little worried about how it will affect their lifestyle. There will be some foods that they won’t be able to eat for a while and some things that have to be prepared differently.

There are several types of braces to choose from now days. From the traditional metal braces to tooth colored or clear braces and even Invisalign- the invisible braces! With all the options and the improved quality of the materials used, braces are better then they have ever been!

Your dentist should always be there to address any concerns you may have.

Best of luck!