Music icon Paul McCartney is about to become a children’s book author—again! the Beatle’s book Hey Grandude! garnered plenty of acclaim. Now McCartney is back with a new title that is another can’t-miss for the kiddos.
Random House Children’s Books in the United States and the UK’s Penguin Random House Children’s Books recently announced the sequel to Hey Grandude!, Grandude’s Green Submarine. The new book continues the adventure McCartney started in Hey Grandude!, telling the tale of a magical grandpa and his grandchildren.
photo courtesy of Penguin Random House
The sequel follows Grandude and his grandkids as they search for Nandude!, the music-loving grandmother. McCartney said of the book, in a press release, “I’m really happy with how Hey Grandude! was received, as this was a very personal story for me, celebrating Grandudes everywhere and their relationships and adventures with their grandchildren. I love that it has become a book read to grandkids at bedtime all around the world.”
The musician/children’s book author continued, “I always said if people liked the first book and there was an appetite for more, I would write some further adventures for Grandude—so he’s back and this time with his special invention, Grandude’s green submarine!”
Grandude’s Green Submarine ($18.99) will make its grand debut on Sep. 2, 2021. McCartney’s book is available for pre-order right now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and from Penguin Random House.
As a first responder, I’ve come across my fair share of heartbreaking scenes: people losing homes to fires, teenage suicides, messy car accidents, and elderly patients who have had to go to the hospital alone because of COVID restrictions. As a father I count myself lucky I haven’t had to come across any pediatric patients yet, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.
As an Emergency Medical Technician in training, we learn to prepare for the worst, and that includes treating children whose lives are in danger. So when any of my friends ask for first time parenting advice, I always tell them the same thing:
The best thing you can do as a new parent is to take an infant and child first aid and CPR course.
My wife and I took one offered by the local community college once before my daughter was born and again right before my son was born. We were fortunate enough with my daughter to never need the skills that we learned, but my son was another story.
As a tactile child, he very much liked to explore his world by putting everything and anything in his mouth. He’s also one of those kids who likes to chipmunk food in their cheeks while they play.
First, it was a piece of leaf. Then it was part of a cracker, a chunk of chicken, a crispy piece of kale, and—just a few weeks ago—a piece of half-chewed sandwich.
Every time our first aid training kicked in. Five quick back slaps and the food came right out. And if that didn’t work, I knew exactly what I’d need to do next—five abdominal thrusts—to keep my son breathing and safe. 911 is a wonderful invention of modern civilization but when minutes count the best thing you can rely on is being prepared for the worst.
If you’re in the US, the American Red Cross and American Heart Association (AHA) both offer Infant and Child First Aid and CPR classes in just about every town and sometimes even online. They can generally be completed in about 6-to-8 hours.
You can find Red Cross classes here and AHA classes here.
As a parent, you already know how wonderful—and stressful—kids can be. Take the time to reduce some of that stress by learning how to help save them from their wonderfully curious selves.
By day I'm a father of two wonderful young kids as well as a software developer with a regular mid-life crisis. By night I'm a volunteer firefighter and EMT-in-training. As a former philosopher I'm particularly passionate about helping others lead a happy and healthy life through self-reflection.
Have you ever stressed over keeping your family’s heirloom ornaments safe? Last year, Ayaan Naqvi, 12, noticed that ornaments kept falling off the Christmas tree and thought there had to be a better way to keep them safe. When a school project called for an invention the Ornament Anchor was born.
When parents and teachers swarmed his booth asking if they could buy some, Ayaan knew he was on to something. With his brother, Mika’il, 13, as his business partner, the two worked together to design the product, patent it, create an awesome website, calculate profit margins and do their own market analysis all on their own. They tested the market last December through a grassroots strategy and sold 6,500 ornament anchors at local craft and Christmas Fairs.
Ornament Anchor launched in Nov. 2019, only three months before the pandemic began. For Ayaan, it was difficult to suddenly quarantine and homeschool while launching a product. He had to completely pivot his strategy of introducing the product to major retailers this year at various trade shows and expos which all got cancelled.
The brothers didn’t let those cancellations slow them down. Ornament Anchor has sold out on QVC twice and the boys have been featured on Good Morning America. Their business has earned a net profit of over $250,000 this year. Ayaan has had a passion for animals so he donates a portion of the proceeds to local animal shelters.
Ornament Anchors come in packs of 24, 48 and 96. Each anchor can hold up to 48 ounces (3 pounds), so you can display all your favorite ornaments without worrying about them sliding off and breaking. Ayaan and Mika’il are saving Christmas, one ornament at a time.
The CDC has issued some strict guidelines for Halloween celebrations this year, and if you’re not sure that trick-or-treating is ok, you’ll want to keep reading. The Brooklyn Robot Foundry has come up with a safe alternative that keeps the candy flowing: the Quarantreater.
The organization that offers online robot making classes for kids has developed a simple invention that keeps kids at a safe distance as they carry about their trick-or-treating business. Thankfully, they’ve also included a graphic to show how you can make your own!
photo: Brooklyn Robot Foundry
The inexpensive project also allows for tons of creativity, like decorating with glow-in-the-dark paint and adding a scary face or eyes. It’s a great activity for kids and parents to do together, and definitely makes for a great memory during theses crazy!
Ahhhh, I found a new calling during the fifth decade of my life, which makes me sound so old! I leisurely made my entrance into the fifth decade (my 40s) with a good job, a great salary, a healthy 9-year-old son, and happy marriage. What better time to pivot and do a complete metamorphosis? And why in the world would you do that? Life can be such a trip.
Our journey in this new adventure started because of a major problem. Plato said, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” What I said was, “What the heck, this is ruining our vacation!” Like trillions of other families, we would vacation at the beach. Around the time my son was 6 years old, he started to really play in the ocean. “Started” is the keyword, because it only lasted a few minutes. Sure enough, we would take all the things down to the beach, finally unpack and settle in our chairs, pop a cold beverage, and there he would come, waddling back to us like a worn-out cowboy with the cowboy tears to go with it. The saltwater caused painful chafing on his thighs, armpits, and chest.
We removed the netting of his cute overpriced swim trunks. We slathered on every known product from the local drug store. He wore basketball trunks, underwear, no underwear, you name it. This went on for summer after summer. One particular gnarly summer beach trip, we waddled to the local surf shop. This wasn’t your cheap surf store. This store catered to surfers, so naturally, we expected they would have a remedy.
They didn’t and suggested going to the local drug store and trying the diaper creams, ointments, and all the things we had already tried. The products we tried either didn’t hold up well, didn’t last very long, left a white residue, or were super messy and left grease all over his boogie board. That summer, I returned from vacation and went to work in my kitchen blending and mixing products I thought could make a difference. We happened to go back to the beach the same summer, and this time I was prepared with my trusty small blue Tupperware container of goop.
We traveled with several other families whose kids suffered from this same issue. Turns out if you pay attention, you’ll see a ton of bowlegged kiddos waddling around in complete misery on the beach. I brought out the goop and we slathered it on the kids in all the trouble spots. They played all day in the water and spent the day uninterrupted on the beach. It did not even dawn on me that I had just created a solution to this major problem.
The following summer, we went back to the beach with a larger group, and more kids. The blue Tupperware made the trip and all of the mothers used it to slather their kids before we left for the beach. One of the mothers, a great friend, looked at me while we were sitting in our beach chairs and said I needed to post on Facebook that I had a solution to this problem. I posted, “Moms, if your kids suffer from chafing from the saltwater while playing in the ocean, I think I have a solution.” I had over 700 comments, DMs and text messages within the hour. I could not believe it.
After arriving home from vacation, I had to immediately blend and fill using what supplies I had leftover, and then order more asap. For six months, my husband and I mixed, poured, and filled containers every day after work. People showed up at my home looking for the goods. We ended up putting a small red cooler on the porch full of jars of goop, which we named “Salty Britches.” People would come by, pick up a jar, and leave $10 behind. The demand was incredible. Friends posted about our new discover like crazy. Strangers showed up at my home.
I did not anticipate the response what so ever. In the fall of that year, 2017, people started discovering other uses for our product. Dry chapped hands, chapped lips, fussy skin and even to prevent blisters on feet, were just some of what we were hearing about. I literally thought I might die of exhaustion, however, from working the two jobs simultaneously. Because of the crazy demand, a friend of mine that owned a local boutique contacted me and asked if I wanted to set up at her shop. On a Saturday morning, I showed up before the store opened with my box of hand mixed and poured Salty Britches and saw a line down the sidewalk of people waiting to buy it. I cried. I hugged everyone. I will never forget that Saturday morning. It was then that I knew, I had to pursue this.
Needless to say, we built a “shop” for our HQ and distribution right behind our tiny home in rural South Carolina. We simplified and downsized our life to bootstrap our business. My then seventh-grader had to move schools and even articulated he knew this was his part to play in this endeavor. I am doing this. I am doing this in my fifth decade of life and I finally feel like I am exactly where I am supposed to be.
“Mama Desperation” was the catalyst for starting my own business. There is a reason the word “mother” is used in the phrase “necessity is the mother of invention.” We are immensely grateful for the local support from our small community. Gratitude is like fuel. Train your mind to appreciate the problems. You never know, solving one might send you on the greatest adventure of your life.
I am a 45 year old Mom of a teenage son, bonus step Mom to two amazing young adults, pet mama, sandwhich generation daughter and daughter in law and I am building a business and brand thanks to an unmet need my son had. The good stuff is in middle life!
Homeschooled kids need to take time away from their screens to unwind and decompress. Last week, Popsicle began rolling out Virtual Recess, a new series of interactive Instagram livestreams, tutorials, storytelling and crafts that inspire families to get creative and play at home. They have partnered with top play experts, Story Pirates and Left Brain Craft Brain, to create this new program.
Parents and kids can tune into Virtual Recess on Popsicle’s Instagram Live every Tuesday and Thurs. at 11 a.m. PST/2 p.m. ET starting Tues., May 12 for new and exciting sessions.
Each original Virtual Recess activity is appropriate for kids ages 6-12, requires no special equipment or supplies, and can be completed in 20 minutes or less. Developed by Popsicle’s play expert partners, these activities are also specifically crafted to inspire kids to use their imaginations.
Create a new invention with Story Pirates, an educational media company that collects written works from kids across the country and adapts those stories into sketches and songs for their podcast. Send a top-secret spy message with Left Brain Craft Brain, a STEAM-based creator that explores scientific methods through art in creative and fun ways.
Follow Popsicle on Instagram for the latest Virtual Recess programming updates and check out Popsicle.com/playzone to access fun DIY crafts and games, all created to help imaginations flourish.
With Christmas around the corner, the Elf on the Shelf is pretty much all over your house. If you’re running low on imaginative Elf ideas, turn on YouTube—and trap the little guy in your TV (or laptop).
Elf on the Shelf trapped in the TV isn’t exactly a brand-new invention. A quick YouTube search will reveal plenty of pages of adorable TV test pattern clips with the words, “I hit the wrong button on the remote…How do i get out of here?” and a pic of the Elf himself.
YouTuber Aaron Holm posted a trapped Elf video back in 2015, writing in the clips’s description, “So, I made this a few years ago just for my family. Since it seems to be gaining views of late, I just thought I’d write a little description. I wasn’t forward thinking when making this. I made it for 10 minutes only so if you need longer either pause it or slow the playback speed to gain extra time.”
With less than a week until Santa arrives, give your kiddo a laugh with this trapped TV test pattern Elf. If you’re looking for a longer version, check out this hour-long clip!
Motherhood can turn you into a sleep deprived mombie. Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg put his skills to work on a device that helps his wife get more sleep and you’re going to want one too.
Zuckerberg noticed that his wife Priscilla Chan, mom of their two daughters, Maxima “Max,” three, and August, one and a half, would wake up often in the middle of the night anxious that the kids were about to wake up. “Being a mom is hard, and since we’ve had kids Priscilla has had a hard time sleeping through the night,” Zuckerberg wrote of his invention. “She’ll wake up and check the time on her phone to see if the kids might wake up soon, but then knowing the time stresses her out and she can’t fall back asleep.”
To remedy the problem Zuckerberg created a device called the Sleep Box that resembles a wooden box. Between the hours of 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. the box emits a faint light that lets her know that it’s a decent hour for the kids to be awake. The light is dim enough that she can fall back asleep if she gets lucky and the kids are sleeping in. In the middle of the night if she wakes too early one brief glance at the box is enough to tell her she can roll over and go back to sleep.
Zuckerberg shared his new invention in a Facebook post which quickly racked up likes and comments, especially from moms. Some were quick to point out that the Sleep Box is like the mom version of the wake clock designed to keep kids from getting out of bed too early.
For moms hoping to get one of their own, there is some hope that they could eventually hit stores. “As an engineer, building a device to help my partner sleep better is one of the best ways I can think of to express my love and gratitude,” he wrote. “A bunch of my friends have told me they’d want something like this, so I’m putting this out there in case another entrepreneur wants to run with this and build sleep boxes for more people!”
Close to two decades ago Dahlia Rezik faced a struggle that many of us mamas deal with daily—strapping her daughter into a car seat while managing the tot’s bulky winter coat. Even though she felt defeated at the time, inspiration struck. This mom’s genius toddler coat invention is helping parents everywhere to overcome this obstacle with ease.
Car seats and puffy winter coats don’t mix. Along with making it almost impossible to strap in your kiddo, the added bulk can interfere with how the safety seat works. These issues leave parents with one choice—to wrangle their tyke out of their coat before strapping them in.
As any parent knows, getting a toddler to take off their coat (without exposing them to the winter chill or risking a major meltdown) is a momentous feat. To solve this problem, Rezik developed her own children’s coat. Instead of a zipper in the middle of the jacket, she moved it to the side. This allows mom or dad to move the coat’s fabric away from the seat’s straps, providing a tight buckle. They can then pull the fabric across the child and zip up the side closure.
After creating a prototype, the mom had it crash tested. Rezik told ABC Radio, “What I wanted to do was have the coat perform as similarly to no coat as possible, and that’s what it did.” The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) compliant coat is now available to buy online. Rezik’s company, Buckle Me Baby Coats, sells the outerwear for $79 to $150.
The moment your kids start asking for a pet you can immediately envision who will be the one doing all the work. (Hint: it’s not them!) One 12-year-old has come up with an ingenious solution to this problem with a pet responsibility reward chart system for kids.
Approximately 6.5 million companion animals enter U.S. animal shelters every year; experts attribute these high numbers as a result of kids being gifted pets without recognizing the level of responsibility involved. When Ava Bertelli learned this, she wanted to do something about it.
Ava invented a system based on Kenson Kids’ popular “I Can Do It” reward chart to help kids keep track of everything that goes into caring for their pet. The charts feature colorful cards and plastic stars with a hook-and-loop fasteners, which provide both visual and tactile stimulation while encouraging pre-reading skills.
“Owning a pet is a lot of responsibility,” says Ava. “Sometimes, kids don’t realize how much time and work it takes to care for a new pet and they give up. I hope this system helps reduce the number of animals who are taken to shelters.”
Kenson Kids has now turned Ava’s invention into its newest products, including customizable pet care checklists, which feature dog care and cat care task cards illustrated by Ava, along with useful tips on caring for pets. The task cards are also available as a supplemental pack that can be used with Kenson Kids’ “I Can Do It!” reward chart and includes the tasks involved to care for dogs, cats or birds. (You can also download Ava’s handy bird care printable here.)
The charts are available at Kenson Kids for $12.95 each and the company is donating a portion of the proceeds to a charity of Ava’s choice that supports animal welfare.