How to Visit Great Wolf Lodge Without Staying the Night

by Kate LowethSeptember 15, 2023

Get all the fun of Great Wolf Lodge without the cost

Are your kids jonesing for a day at the waterpark? Did you know that you can visit one of the many Great Wolf Lodge locations across the US without staying the night? The Great Wolf Lodge day pass is a great way to get the fun of the water park, restaurants, activities, and more.

Purchase your day pass online before you head over. Kids 2 and under do not require a pass but all other guests entering the facility will need a pass (even those not planning on swimming). Pick up your passes at the front desk when you arrive.

family at Great Wolf Lodge — *Great Wolf Lodge*

Here are some other tips for your visit:

Guests are strongly encouraged to bring their own towels.
Coolers and outside food are not permitted in the water park.
Lockers are available at a nominal fee on a first-come, first-served basis.
You are welcome to bring your own life jacket. Great Wolf provides Coast Guard-approved life jackets on a first-come, first-served basis.
Parking fees apply at our Southern California location.

Dry-land attractions and dining outlets are available at an additional cost. You are not able to add on a dining package to your day pass.

For those worried that day pass might cause crowds and wait times for the pools and slides, Great Wolf Lodge promises to maintain capacity restraints. “Families love knowing that when they come to the waterpark at Great Wolf Lodge, they won’t need to wait in long lines for their favorite slides, struggle to find a deck chair, or swim shoulder to shoulder in our pools,” Murray Hennessy, chief executive officer for Great Wolf Resorts said in a press release. “By managing capacity levels at our waterparks we will continue to offer a stress-free waterpark experience, just as we have from the onset of Great Wolf Lodge.”

20+ Calming Phrases That’ll Help an Anxious Child

by Kipp Jarecke-ChengAugust 15, 2023

Simple things like “let’s count to 20 together” really work

While occasional anxiety and nervousness are perfectly normal feelings for many kids—especially in reaction to new or unfamiliar situations—some may experience persistent or extreme forms of fear or sadness. One in four children will experience anxiety disorders in their lifetime, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that anxiety and depression among kids ages three to 17 have increased over time. How can parents help? We can get them to express their worries by using phrases that’ll help calm an anxious child in various situations.

What to Say When They Have School Anxiety

school can be scary for an anxious child. — Jerry Wang via Unsplash

School-related anxiety is so common in children that it often masquerades as other ailments. Whether your child suddenly complains of a headache or an upset stomach just before going to school or starts to act out at the mention of homework, there’s a good chance they're likely experiencing school anxiety. Here’s what you can say to help:

“Remind me what your favorite subjects or activities at school are.”
By redirecting your child’s attention to things that they care about at school—like favorite subjects and school activities—they can focus on the positives instead of worrying about the bad stuff.

“Let’s take a few deep breaths together.”
Modeling calming behaviors will show your child that there are better ways to regulate their emotions than acting out.

“What are you most looking forward to learning at school?”
Similar to asking about the things they enjoy at school, encouraging your child to anticipate all of the good things in their upcoming day can help to build new habits and associate new feelings about school.

“Have you gone through your checklist for the day?”
It’s useful to develop a checklist to help your child gain a greater sense of control over her daily schedule and activities.

“How can I help you feel better?”
By offering your support, your child will know that you recognize their school anxiety is real and that you are there to help.

What to Say When They Have Crowd Anxiety

Fear of the unknown can trigger anxiety in people of all ages, but for children especially, the experience of being in large unfamiliar crowds can be overwhelming. Whether it’s at an airport or a sports stadium, being little among a group of strangers can induce anxiety. Here are a few things to tell your crowd-nervous kid:

“I’m right here with you. You are safe.”
Reassuring your anxious child that they are safe with you will go a long way to allay their fears, whether they are real or imagined.

“Let’s count to 20 together.”
Offer up different coping skills to your child, such as taking a moment to calm down.

“Many things are going on, but focus only on what’s in front of you.”
An overwhelmed child may experience sensory overload, so encouraging them to focus on something small may help to block out external distractions.

“I know this can feel scary.”
Validating your nervous child’s concerns will let them know you care and are listening to them.

“Everything is OK, this moment will pass.”
Remind your child that their feelings are real, but the scary moment is temporary and eventually will pass.

What to Say When They Have New Experiences Anxiety

This anxious child is expressing himself. — Luz Fuertes via Unsplash

Trying something new for the first time often requires a leap of faith, which either can be thrillingly fun or can stir butterflies in the pit of your stomach. An anxious child may be prone to over-thinking how a new experience will play out. Here are some statements to help your kid get through something new:

“Tell me what you think will happen next.”
Anxiety about new experiences is often correlated with feeling a loss of control. Encouraging your anxious child to think about what will happen next may help them imagine a situation in which they have greater control.

“Tell me what you’re looking forward to seeing.”
Emphasizing the positive possibilities of a new experience can help your child discover something fun to look forward to.

“The scary part will pass.”
Remind your frightened child that the scary parts of new experiences are temporary and will eventually pass.

“What can we explore together?”
Tell your child that you are in this together.

“You are brave—you got this.”
Offer words of encouragement to help your anxious child recognize the strength they already possess.

What to Say When They Have Performance Anxiety

Talking to an anxious child about sports. — NeONBRAND via Unsplash

Whether it’s stage fright or the onset of nerves during sporting activities, kids can sometimes feel overwhelmed when they need to perform. Parents can help guide their children through this kind of anxiety with a few simple words of encouragement:

“It’s OK to be nervous.”
Remind your child that nerves are natural stress responses, and it’s OK to rechannel feelings of nervousness into something that they can control.

“Tell yourself, ‘I can do this!’ ”
Foster your child’s belief that they can do whatever they set their mind to doing.

Make a battle cry for yourself: “I am invincible!”
Creating a battle cry can help to shore up your child’s confidence and encourage them to tap into their inner strengths.

“What’s the worst thing that could happen?”
Encouraging your nervous child to imagine worst-case scenarios may seem counter-intuitive, but allowing them to think through all of the various situations that could occur may help them gain a better understanding of how they would respond in each case.

“Just do your best. I’m already proud of you.”
Assure your anxious child that you support their efforts, regardless of the outcome.

Family Anxiety

A large family reunion, which can be scary for an anxious child. — Tyler Nix via Unsplash

Visiting relatives can be difficult for some kids, especially if it’s been a while since their last visit. Children like structure and routine, and when day-to-day routines are broken by visiting relatives, kids who are prone to anxiety may panic. Here’s what to say to them:

“Tell me about how you’re feeling.”
Listen to what your nervous child has to say. Acknowledge their feelings and work with them to learn coping skills that will help them feel better.

“I get anxious sometimes, too.”
Demonstrate that you are empathetic to your child’s feelings by talking about the things that make you anxious.

“What do you need from me?”
Your child may need something as simple as a few words of support or a hug, but asking them what they need at the moment can help assure them that you are responsive to their needs.

“Let’s take a moment for ourselves.”
Don’t be afraid to give your child and yourself a time out from whatever hecticness is occurring with family visits.

“I can’t wait until …”
Talk to your anxious child about what you’re looking forward to, whether it’s spending time with grandma and grandpa or going on a family vacation.

Why Your Toddler Prefers One Parent (and Quick Ways to Unglue Them)

by Shelley MasseyAugust 1, 2023

Toddlers are hardwired to have a favorite parent, but love has nothing to do with it

My three-year-old won’t let my husband get her ready for bed. You know, that fun phase when your toddler prefers one parent? Only I will do. Cute, right? You may be imagining some mommy-and-me cuddles, footie pajamas snuggled into the crook of my arm while we read our favorite stories and sing silly bedtime songs. Not quite! Instead, picture this: I send her with her dad to get ready for bedtime, while I take a break to watch my favorite show. It’s called Washing the Dishes—I binge it every night. But about midway through, I have to go rescue them both and finish her bath (and her brother’s, who’s in the tub, too), get them dried and dressed, teeth brushed and jammied up, as only I’m permitted to do. When it’s all done, all I want to do is lie horizontally and stare at the ceiling.

Being the preferred parent for every task, every time, is hard, especially when you’ve worked or parented all day. And for single parents, it’s hard when you’re somehow managing to do it all nonstop (more on this further down). You’re depleted, and odds are good that you still have a day’s worth of work ahead of you when they finally go to sleep. It’s not your child’s fault. It’s not your partner’s fault. It’s just the way it is right now, and you’re torn between loving the honor and drowning in your child’s constant need for your help.

What is toddler favoritism?

Toddler or parental favoritism is when a little kid only wants to spend time with one parent and will mostly only allow that parent to take care of their needs. And they aren’t subtle. They can be so forceful in their preference that not getting mom or dad can lead to tantrums and physical resistance.

Why do toddlers have a parental preference?

For a number of reasons. Toddlers are constantly trying to assert their independence and this is one way to do so, much like how they choose a particular lovey as their favorite (and we hope you have at least three backups stashed away!). They also tend to develop a preference for the parent who more routinely does things for them, and this preferred parent can change over time—like when a new baby joins the family and your firstborn starts spending way more time with the non-birthing parent.

Favoritism is actually also a survival tactic for kids. “Children, especially ones under the age of 5, are reliant on their primary caregivers for survival and unconsciously act on this when they insist on only accepting help and nurturing from one parent,” says Sarah Alperin, a child behavior expert. “Of course, it’s not personal, though it can be really hard not to take it that way when you’re the parent who’s shut out.”

When a kid sees that one parent is more available than the other, they fight to keep it that way because connecting and having their needs met is so crucial, so they go where they get the most consistent results. This is called ‘hierarchies of attachment,’ in which kids unconsciously rank their caregivers based on who has been around the most. As their memories improve and they experience more with all caregivers, they become more comfortable with both parents and less rigid about who they want in their corner.

Should you be concerned if your toddler prefers one parent?

According to experts, this phenomenon isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It can be a sign of a healthy relationship between a child and both parents. “Favoring or excluding one parent is your child saying, ‘I can choose you right now because I know my other parent will be there for me regardless’,” says Lydia Mays, Ph.D., founder & CEO of See Beautiful. “Child favoritism and exclusion ebb and flow through not only the toddler years but also into childhood.” And guess what? It’s even expected during a time of uncertainty, anxiety, or stress. Toddler parents learned this all too well in 2020.

How to handle your kid only wanting mom or dad

So what do you do? How do you parent one, or even multiple kids, when you’re constantly being tapped to provide care and reassurance for your “barnacle child?” (We’re not being mean. We didn’t make up that term. It’s a thing.) First and foremost, the parent who is not preferred needs to play it cool. “When parents take it personally, children know and begin to sense parental insecurity,” Alperin explains. “Any insecurity a child senses in a parent will signal them to push them farther away in an attempt to seek a more competent and capable caregiver. What children seek and respond to the most is consistency, safety, acceptance, and connection.”

There are also ways to help foster connection between your kiddo and their less-preferred parent. Mays suggests the following ways to help the less-chosen parent swing the pendulum back toward shared parental choice—and avoid hurt feelings and total burnout:

For the “Barnacle Parent”:

Pass the fun baton: Divvy up roles and let the “less-chosen” parent tap in for the things your toddler loves to do most!
Be gone: When you’re physically away from your child, it provides opportunities for your toddler to have reconnecting and relationship-building time with the other parent.
Handoff: When your child is leaning heavily on you for support and the other parent is home, hand off the toddler’s need to the less-chosen one (e.g., “Mommy can’t right now, but Daddy can help you” or “Daddy’s busy right now, but Papa is free to do that with you.”)
High praise: Give compliments to the other parent in a way that your child can see the wonderful things that person is doing, too. For example, “Mommy makes up the best bedtime stories!” or “Daddy’s dinner is always my favorite. It’s so delicious.”

For the “Less-Chosen Parent”:

Have thick skin: It makes perfect sense that feeling snubbed by your toddler would be tough, but this action is only because you’re doing a great job and your child trusts you and knows you’ll be there for them. While hard, it’s a healthy phase for your child. Try not to get your feelings hurt. Be patient, understanding that withdrawing or showing frustration could further strengthen the attachment between your child and the “barnacle parent.”
One-on-one: Take some time to establish new one-on-one routines and traditions.
Love hard: Consistently affirm your love for your child and reassure him of your presence and the joy you experience being part of his life every day.

For parents navigating this alone:

Your goal will be to bolster your child’s independence and confidence. Atlanta psychologist Ellen Berman, Ph.D., notes that “single parents are in a unique relationship with their children, in that they must find ways to balance the family responsibilities in age and developmentally appropriate ways, often more so than dual-parent households.” To encourage your “barnacle baby’s” independence, focus on:

Routine: During the day, when kids know what to expect and when, they’re more likely to take on new responsibilities without feeling overwhelmed.
Advance planning: Odds are, you’re juggling a million tasks at once. When your child needs your attention, it might help to be prepared with a re-direct (if you’re unable to help right then) or with a set time during your day when you can help.
Prioritizing sleep: There’s no doubt that you’re burning the candle at both ends. Make sure you’re giving yourself time to recharge and remember that your child’s frustration at sometimes having to take a number is greatly magnified when they’re tired, too.

At the end of the day, this phase won’t last forever, and we promise you’ll get through it. Whether you’re constantly being chosen to do all the things, or never—or perhaps you have no choice and are the only option for doing all the things—you’re likely doing it very well, and we see you. Keep up the good work, and in the meantime, check out these children’s books, which might help spread the love.

Children’s books for relationship reconnection with Dad:

Made for Me by Zack Bush
My Dad is Amazing by Sabrina Moyle
With My Daddy by Jo Witek
Daddy Hugs by Karen Katz
Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney

Children’s books for relationship reconnection with Mom:

Mighty Moms by Joan Holub
Mommy Hugs by Karen Katz
The Mommy Book by Todd Parr
If Kisses Were Colors by Janet Lawler

There’s a Disney ‘Hocus Pocus’ Game to Play With Your Best Witches

by Karly WoodJuly 22, 2022

It’s been quite the year for Hocus Pocus news. Now that we are officially counting down the days until the second movie hits Disney+ this fall, we are more than ready to amp up the next few months with all things Sanderson sisters.

Thankfully, there’s a Ravensburger Disney Hocus Pocus: The Game. The fun and easy board game the whole family can play. Players work together to ruin the potions concocted by the legendary Sanderson sisters to save the lives of Salem’s children before the sun rises!

Players must work together to ruin the Sanderson Witches’ potion three times before the sun rises. Players hold a hand of ingredients of different types and colors and attempt to match all ingredient types or colors in the cauldron.

To play, each person asks a question about another players’ hand, like an ingredient type or color. Then they play a card into the cauldron and pick up three new cards. The goal is to stun the witches three times, which means you have cards all of one color or object in the cauldron. Everyone works together to stun the withes with their collective cards.

Fans of the movie will recognize favorite spells, appearances by characters like Binx the cat and Billy Butcherson, and for an extra bonus, the game box is designed to look like none other than “Book.” The game includes plenty of other creepy details you love about the film, but the fantastical illustrations are tame enough for even your youngest gamers.

Each box comes with one cauldron board, 50 Ingredient cards, a Witch board, 13 Spell cards, a Sun token, four trick tokens, a rulebook, and one Binx meeple. A cooperative game that an entire group wins or loses together, it can be played with two to six players, ages eight and up. The best part? You can play a round in just 30 minutes!

Don’t forget to tune into Disney+ come Sept, 30, when Hocus Pocus 2 finally drops.

Ravensburger Disney Hocus Pocus: A Cooperative Game of Magic and Mayhem

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I Didn’t See My Son’s Disability Until He Was 15

By Stephanie Duesing

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

June 8, 2022

My son, Sebastian, and I lived in the same house for 15 years. I gave birth to him. I changed his diapers and taught him to ride a bicycle.

I was a stay-at-home mom, and he was my only child. We spent hours together every day playing and doing crafts together. He painted the most extraordinary pictures even as a toddler. His existence filled my imagination from the moment that I looked at the faint blue positive mark on the pregnancy test.

But I didn’t truly know Sebastian until he was 15. I didn’t know him, because I didn’t see him.

Nobody saw him. Sebastian is the only person in the world known to see with words like a dolphin sees with sound. His blindness is an invisible disability. He has always slipped through our sighted world with what appeared to be the same ease as a spinner dolphin flying through the air.

Now Sebastian is 18, and every time he hugs me I can still feel the shell of his tiny newborn ear against my lips and his infant body in the nook of my shoulder where his chest meets mine. I always inhale, trying to recapture that baby smell and the tickle of almost invisible hair on my lips. His hair is now thick and smooth, not the dandelion fuzz of pale blond.

I cherished every sweet moment with him when he was small. Every hug, every smile, every game of hide-and-seek. I rocked him to sleep each night when he was little. We read aloud together until he was 12. He still hates Les Miserables. Tolkien was more his thing, with the dragons, wizards, and the magic ring that makes you invisible but also drains your soul.

He still hugs me every night before I go up to bed. Even after everything, especially after everything, Sebastian tells me that he loves me. When his long arms reach around my shoulders and he leans, I can still feel his little sneakers banging my hips and his little toddler arms hugging my neck. I smell the ghost of Cheerios-past every time.

In the car when we talk about the things we’ve been through together, about how I finally came to know him and see him, I reach out my hand to him. Sebastian’s cool, long-fingered artist’s hand lands in mine, squeezing. In his gentle adult grasp, I feel the ghostly hand of a child in mine, much smaller.

What magic ring did Sebastian have that cast its spell so thoroughly over him that it silently saved him while killing his soul? Surely it was not the cloak of invisibility that he wore all through his childhood as he zoomed through my house waving his wand. He was Darry, King of the Fairies and Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts. He cast his charm all over so thoroughly that I didn’t see him. Nobody saw him.

I remember his eyes, so bright blue and filled with pain as we both sobbed on the kitchen floor. It was January of 2017, and we had just discovered that 15-year-old Sebastian couldn’t recognize his own face and had taught himself to navigate our own home by counting his steps and turns. I had to tell him that he’d been born blind, not understanding how it was possible myself.

After I finally saw him and his invisible disability, I was crushed with guilt. How could I, as his loving mother, not see what was there before my eyes? Not seeing him kept me from giving the support he truly needed.

Yet with time, I came to realize that I had done nothing wrong. Like him, I did not know I was blind: blind to the side of him nobody could see. My intentions were always good and pure. They were rooted in love and tenderness and a desire to be the best mother I could be.

That’s what we all want as mothers. But sometimes, life creates blind spots. When we come to recognize them, we must accept and learn from them.

Now I am privileged to see the man who walks through this world with dignity and grace. His dry, laconic humor cracks me up, and his striking art inspires me. With his help and support, I am fighting to end the discrimination against the millions of people who have cerebral/cortical visual impairment. (CVI was identified as the number one cause of visual impairment in the developed world more than 10 years ago and still doesn’t have a diagnostic code.)

Every day, I celebrate seeing him for the wonderful man he is.

Originally published May 2021.

Stephanie Duesing

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

Stephanie Duesing is the author of Eyeless Mind: A Memoir About Seeing and Being Seen, a true story about the discovery of her son Sebastian’s almost total blindness at the age of fifteen. Stephanie is devoted to raising awareness of Cerebral/Cortical-Visual Impairment (CVI) and advocating for patients with this visual impairment.

Early Math DIY Flashcards for Toddlers

by Erin FeherFebruary 22, 2022

Flashcards aren’t just for big kids learning their addition and multiplication tables. Strong number sense starts with having a firm grasp of counting and number recognition. These easy DIY flashcards take less than ten minutes to make and can have your toddler tightening up their counting skills in no time flat.

What you will need:

–2 sheets of paper

–Scissors

–Either a stamp or 55 small identical stickers

–Colored pencils or crayons

What to Do:

Cut the paper into 10 identical cards, about the size of playing cards.

Use the stamp or the stickers to create number patterns, from 1-10 on each of the cards. For the patterns, either follow the image above or mimic those found on playing cards.

On the back of each card write the number, large and clear enough for your child to recognize it instantly.

Simply have your toddler count the dots or shapes on on side of the card. Flip over to the card to see if they counted correctly.

After a while of practicing, your child should begin to memorize the patterns, beginning with the simple 1, 2 and 3 cards. Eventually, this can become a learning game of speed.

—Taylor Clifton & Erin Feher

Feature image: Jose Ibarra via Unsplash

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What Experts Say about Anxiety & Kids

By Kenzie Butera Davis

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

September 10, 2021

Photo: Vitolda Klein on Unsplash

Every child worries. And whether it be about their first day of school or trying out a new sport, every worry matters. It’s important that you, as a parent, let them know that you’re listening, let them know you understand, and help them understand as well. Keep in mind that kids learn how to recognize and express their worry by observing and mimicking others’ behavior or relying on you to teach them! Here’s some tips on explaining worry and anxiety to your little one.

First, start by validating that what they feel is real.
When your child is worried, they might feel like something is wrong with them, or like no one understands them. In fact, they might not even realize that what they’re feeling is worry! It’s important to let your child know that what they’re feeling is okay, and that they’re not alone in these feelings.

More often than not, kids feel worry in a physical way, like a stomachache. But they likely won’t recognize that as being connected to their emotions. It can be helpful to use your own example to explain the connection, “I remember when it was my first day at a new school and my stomach wouldn’t stop hurting…turns out I was feeling worried”.

Validating your kid’s feelings—physical, emotional, and the connection between them—is an important step toward helping them understand anxiety and why they feel it.

Now that they can identify what they’re feeling as worry, what do we do?
Once your child has practice recognizing worry when they feel it, you may even come up with a plan on how to handle that worry; be it deep breaths, focusing on the present, or saying their worries aloud.

1. Take Deep Breaths
Deep breaths are a simple, yet effective, way to cope with worry. It can aid in relaxing both the mind and body. If your kid is a visual learner, try the box breathing technique. Tell your child to focus on any four-sided object in the room. When they find their target, you’ll want them to inhale for 4 counts as they trace the first side with their eyes or hands, hold their breath for 4 counts as they trace the second side, exhale for 4 counts as they do the same on the third side, and hold for 4 counts as they trace the last side. The counts can be faster or slower depending on your child, and they can go around the four-sided object as many times as they need to feel calm. If they’re not visual learners, have them do the same technique minus the object.

2. Focus on the Present
Say your child has a math test coming up and they’re really starting to worry. Help them learn to focus on the present moment by having them try the 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 trick…What are 5 things they can see? How about 4 things they can feel? 3 things they can hear? 2 things they can smell? 1 thing they can taste? Pulling away from worries of the future and focusing on the present can help ease their mind.

3. Talk Back to Your Worries
Sometimes it’s helpful to talk. Even to yourself. Have your little one say their worries out loud. But to make it even better, have them add in the fact that they can handle their worry, that they won’t let it get the best of them. Saying their worries out loud and talking back to them can ease the anxiety-symptoms, and even give them a little boost of confidence!

4. Exercise Patience
Anxiety, albeit complicated, is totally normal. And so is a child not being able to connect those physical symptoms they have with what they’re thinking or feeling. Be patient when teaching them about that connection, be patient when they’re still confused and scared, and be patient when you help them come up with their plans.

Worry and anxiety can be tough for anyone to understand, regardless of age. That being said, let your child know that their feelings are valid, important, and heard. Having that support can make all the difference in the world for them.

To learn more about explaining anxiety to your child, check out Maro Parents.

Kenzie Butera Davis

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

maro helps parents navigate tough growing-up conversations with their kids: mental health, puberty, empathy & diversity.

“Paw Patrol” Is Heading to the Big Screen with an All-Star Cast

by Jamie AderskiAugust 15, 2021

You’ve caught yourself humming the PAW Patrol theme song enough to know it’s one of your kiddo’s favorite shows. Now, for the first time EVER, Ryder and his gang of pups are heading out of Adventure Bay and taking to the big screen! Get your pup packs ready and head to your local theater to catch PAW Patrol: The Movie on August 20! Read on to get the scoop.

Head Beyond the Bay

Follow your favorite furry friends outside of their beloved Adventure Bay into the big, busy Adventure City where their arch-rival, Humdinger, has been elected mayor to disastrous results. But luckily, the PAW Patrol is on a roll, and they work together with a new pal Liberty—the city-savvy dachshund— to put things right.

Name That Pup

Chase, Marshall, Rubble, Skye, Rocky and Zuma are joined by their new pal, Liberty, and an outstanding new cast of supporting canine characters. Listen closely and see if you can recognize the celebs behind the voices, including Yara Shahidi, Kim Kardashian, Tyler Perry, Jimmy Kimmel, Randall Park and Dax Shepherd. In addition, you’ll find a star-studded soundtrack by artists including Adam Levine and Alessia Cara.

Chase Is on the Case

To coincide with the movie premiere, Paramount is launching some paw-some new features for families! You’ll find coloring and activity sheets and even a way to get a personalized message for your kids from Chase.

Better Than Ever

On air since 2013, with nearly 200 episodes (most of which we’re betting your kids have seen more than once), PAW Patrol: The Movie will thrill fans of the show in new ways while holding on to that core mission of the pups—do good, and be kind.

PAW It Forward

Just like the pups do, you can PAW It Forward! Parents, kids, and fans alike are talking about different ways they can pay it forward in their own community, whether at home, in the classroom, or with friends and neighbors.

PAW Patrol: The Movie is premiering on August 20 in theaters and on Paramount+, so book your seats and be there on the double!

—Amber Guetebier

It’s Baby Situation! Mike & Lauren Sorrentino Welcome First Child

by Sarah ShebekMay 28, 2021

We have a (mini) situation! And he has a fantastic name: Romeo Reign. He’s the first child of Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino and wife Lauren Sorrentino.

You’ll likely recognize Mike from the Jersey Shore series, who married his longtime love Lauren Pesce in 2018. They’ve already set up an Instagram account for their new addition with one of the best handles we’ve seen in a while, @itsbabysituation. Baby Romeo’s debut picture is captioned with his weight (six pounds, eight ounces) and length (19 inches).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Romeo Reign Sorrentino 👑 (@itsbabysituation)

Romeo’s new Insta account also teases the launch of “Shop Baby Sitch” on June 1. Described as a premium lifestyle baby brand, it will feature products hand-picked by Mike and Lauren. And Baby Situation is feeling lots of love in the comment section, as Snooki, MTV and the Jersey Shore accounts sent congratulations to the family. We’ll join in with our own best wishes to the happy family of three!

—Sarah Shebek

Featured image courtesy of Tinseltown / Shutterstock.com

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Disney’s New Musical Series Aims to Educate Kids on Race & Social Justice

by Sarah ShebekMay 20, 2021

Current events aren’t always easy to navigate as an adult, let alone as a child. That’s why Disney Junior just announced the launch of the new animated short series Rise Up, Sing Out.

The series aims to present critical concepts around race, racism and social justice for a pint-sized audience and will use music-based shorts to make the message resonate. To make the series even more impactful, Disney has recruited the talents of Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter of the Grammy Award winning musical group, The Roots.

In a joint statement the two musicians said, “It is an honor to work with the Disney Junior team to help create a series of shorts that will empower and uplift the future generations in the way we know best, through music. We hope these shorts will encourage the young audience to recognize and celebrate our differences as human beings while learning the tools to navigate real-world issues of racial injustice.”

That’s not all—The Conscious Kid, an organization dedicated to equity and healthy racial identity development is serving as a consultant on the series and plans to develop a viewing companion guide for parents. Latoya Raveneau, who is involved with the upcoming The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder will serve as executive producer.

You’ll be able to watch later this year on all Disney Junior platforms.

—Sarah Shebek

Image courtesy of Disney Junior

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