Christmas shopping with small children.

Remember when Christmas shopping was something you could put off until the last minute, and then rush through, in one evening? Alone? Ahhh-those were the days, weren't they?
Now you have little shoppers, and you can't rush through anything, anymore, and a trip to the any shop-is an operation which requires military-style planning.
You can't wait until late at night. You can't slide and squeeze and speed your way through the crowds. And, most of all, you can't dawdle, examining something on the shelf-when you're shopping with small children, dawdling is definitely forbidden.
"Mommy, I want that!""Daddy, I'm hungry!""I have to go to the bathroom!""I want to go home!"
By the time Christmas rolls around, you never want to see the inside of a toy shop, again.
The good news is, you're not alone. Parents of small children all over the world are sharing your pain. The bad news is, there's no easy way to shop for Christmas, with small children. There are, however, a few ways to take a tiny bit of the stress out of the process.
In the spirit of keeping your kids engaged and involved-rather than just being unwilling passengers on the journey-make your shopping trip their shopping trip, too. Have them make a list of things they want to give as gifts to their grandparents, cousins, or friends. Do your shopping, first then deal with their lists-this can help keep them as anxious as you, to see that your shopping is done, quickly.
Plan a visit to see Santa, on the condition that your kids are well-behaved and as helpful as possible-but make Santa your last stop.
Bring snacks along-hungry kids tend to be irritable. Bring activities, like coloring books, to keep them occupied, while you shop.
Talk with your children before your shopping trip. Plan a reward or discipline system for them, based on their behavior at the store. If they become unruly, don't take the bait and discipline them at the shop-just be sure, when the trip's over, to follow through with your plan.
Know your kids. If you realize that a successful Christmas shopping trip with them is a hopeless dream, then find a way to leave them at home, with a sitter or your spouse.
Christmas shopping is a cultural ritual that's here to stay. Look at it this way-you only have to survive a few years of it, with small children. Then you can go back to the last-minute, late-night gift runs with no stress!!

OAKWOOD THEME PARK

If you’ve got young kids to entertain, why not go to Oakwood Theme Park.
Here is a great plan so you don’t miss anything!!

Take the short train ride from the entrance into the park and head straight for the fun filled KidzWorld. Start off with The Truck Stop. Beep beep…..
The Clown Coaster will get them giggling – it’s right next door.
Put on their flying goggles and take off down the landing strip on an Airplane Ride.
Land by the Carousel, but don’t get dizzy!
Time for a drink?
Cyril the Squirrel loves to stop at the Acorn Tea Rooms. There’s ice cream too, if you wanta treat before trying the Ferris Wheel.
Back down to earth and a spot of farming on the Tractor Ride should be your next stop.
Let them loose in the Playground, then head indoors to the Lost Kingdom to run riot in the soft play area.
You’ll be exhausted just watching, so sit down and relax.
As long as it’s not Monday or Tuesday, you can catch a magic show at 11.30am in the Magic Factory.
Don’t worry if you miss it - there’s another one this afternoon
After the show, your little magicians can try a few magic tricks of their own, before transporting you with a flick of the wand to the Bobsleigh Run.
Get your breath back with a relaxing paddle around the Boating Lake. Look out for the ducks!
By now, there might be some rumbling tummies. Head for one of our lunch stops and re-fuel for the afternoon.


Ready to go again?

Back at the Magic Factory, Matt the Magic Man will teach the kids some amazingcircus skills.
The Pirate Ship. It operates a half swing for smaller children every hour, on the hour.
Make sure your lunch has gone down before you take to the skies and go Plane Crazy. If you missed the early performance of the magic show, hey presto! Here’s another one.
The Wacky Factory in the Lost Kingdom is not to be missed. Prepare to do battle with the cannon blasters!
Don the white coats and put your little Einsteins to the test with the hands-on experiments in Techniquest.
Got the next Tiger Woods in your family? Let them loose on Mini-Golf but beware, there could be a few surprises in store.
Round off the day in New Orleans by joining the gold rush, take a ride into Brer Rabbit’s Burrow and bravethe Spooky 3D ghost train!

Build the Best Sandcastle

Start by digging a hole down to the water table. (If you dig too far from the shoreline you will probably have to dig a very deep hole... too close and you might get wiped out by waves or incoming tides.)
Water is the glue that holds the sand together, so you want to have an easily accessible source. An alternative to digging a hole is to mix the sand and water in a bucket and build out of it instead.

Using your hands like a front end loader, scoop out a large double handful of super wet sand from the bottom of the hole, pulling the sand towards you. Move that sand fast so you don't lose all the water before you get to your destination. Start building your castle on top of the mound of sand you dug from the hole.
Build a Tower
Flatten your handfuls of wet sand into pancakes by jiggling them with gentle pressure. DO NOT pound, push, pat, pack or pummel the sand into submission! The goal is to distribute the water consistantly through the patty so it settles into and binds to the patty below.
A tower is nothing more than a stack of sand patties piled on top of each other.Use smaller handfuls as you gain altitude so that the tower tapers at the top and doesn't get top-heavy and fall over before you get to carve it.
Build a Wall
We use walls to connect towers to other towers and to create staircases. You can carve your name on a wall or tunnel through it as well.
Once again, pull a doublehandful of wet sand from the hole. This time, instead of flattening it into a pancake, hold the sides between your flattened hands and jiggle so that the sand takes a brick shape. Keep laying bricks end to end for the desired length of the wall, then lay another layer on top, repeating until you reach the desired height. To form a staircase, first carve the wall into a descending ramp, then cut in individual steps
Carving the Structures You Have Built
Put a point on a tower -- Start at the top by cutting an upside down V so it resembles a steeply sloped roof. Repeat from other angle to form a pyramid. Carefully shave off corners to form a cone shape. Undercut to create roof line. Carve windows and doors, etc. etc.
Have fun……….

Circus in Town

The Big Kid circus is in Pembrokeshire for the month of August.

From the 4th to the 29th August.

A Performance at 3pm & 7pm on each day.

No Shows on Sunday's

The circus is in New Hedges, near Tenby.

located near the round about, next to the New Hedges local market.

Party by the Beach at Tenby Harbour

Sunday 9th Aug 2009

Organised by the Tenby Round Table.

£1 entry (money to go to local charities.)

From 3.00pm till 10.00pm

Children’s entertainment, face painters, story with Rory, Irish dancers, Summer High 'Fun Show', Magic Show, Samba and Salsa band, stilt walkers/jugglers, Pig Roast, Life boat launch, bouncy castle, evening of live music and a grand finale fireworks.

YOU’RE HAVING A GIRAFFE......

The first giraffes in Wales are in residence in Pembrokeshire, by top tourist attraction.

Folly Farm.
Half-brothers Ja Ja, Taharqa and Khama, from Marwell Zoo in Winchester have been joined by Rafiki in a huge purpose-built African-themed enclosure. From there, they will be able to venture out into a five-acre paddock to roam alongside zebra.

The tallest of the group, and fully grown at 18 feet, is eight-year-old Rafiki, with his half-brothers aged between two and six and on course to also reach his lofty height.

The boys - who are friendly and inquisitive, and love to be hand-fed by their keepers.
So get your skates on and come and meet the boys in the Motobo Hills African Plains area of the zoo.

Walking with young children

Young children love to be outside and explore nature. What better way for children to develop a sense of respect for nature than to be immersed in environmental activities year-round.

To begin, identify a theme: Spring Is in the Air, Explore Your Playground, Where Are the Leaves? Wintertime for Animals, Search for the Early Birds, etc. Once you establish a theme, take the children on a hike in a nearby wooded area, in a field, or on a nature trail. Visit the location several times during the year so that children may identify changes within the same setting over time.

Walks are an excellent opportunity to develop young children's observation skills. For example, have children compare the shapes, forms, and conditions of trees several times each year. Observing trees with or without bark, leaves, flowers, or fruit each month helps children develop an awareness of the processes of nature.

Take time for children to listen quietly to the many sounds on the hike. Ask children to pantomime the noises they hear. Later, have them draw, sing, or write about their experiences on the outdoor hike. Expressing these sensory experiences helps children to share their understanding of the event.