How can I match colors on my blog?

Let me preface this "mini-tutorial" with some background. I've had Photoshop for years, just started to use it for anything more than re-sizing pictures in the last year and everything I know about Photoshop I've googled. Since I only learn what I need to know, it came as a total surprise a few months back to discover the purpose of the eye dropper tool. Simple but so useful to a bloggers. Get this...you can open an image, click the eyedropper icon in your tools, click anywhere on the image you want to discover the its color and voila, the color code appears like magic! Believe it or not when previously designing banners or latching titles for the site I would "eyeball" it, but no longer. Imagine that.

Featured Blog: Cool Mom Guide

Follow Julie Maloney as she tries to remain cool in the eyes of her children on Cool Mom Guide.

Parenting Tip: My best parenting tip is to be open about what your kids have to say. If they know you'll be quick to judge, they won't be so quick to confide.

Blogging Tip: Show your friends love. Promote blog peace. We all have something different to say and we all have something of value. Let's help each other out, show the link love and participate in the memes and contests!

Baby Kids’ Thoughts: Julie lost 60 pounds using the Wii Fit and says “My whole life I struggled, and if we can all start to feel good about ourselves while playing a video game it's a win-win situation!” She created The Wii Mommies in the process and is truly an inspiration!

Follow Julie on Twitter, fav her on Technorati and Digg

It's a Blog Popz Twitter Party & 6th Blog Pop!

It's time for a Blog Popz Twitter party, and we're not fooling around! Bloggers, pops, prizes, special guests....it'll be a blast. Join us on April 1st from 9-10 p.m. EST to pop and be popped. Just like popz themselves, our Blog Popz Twitter Party is about sharing sites we love, thanking blog mentors and networking with new bloggers.

Thank you to Simply Heaven Lollipop Shoppe for being the Blog Popz Twitter party sponsor!

To Participate:

1. Be sure you're following these Blog Popz Candy Store owners on Twitter:

@coolbabykid, @ellieandeve, @ohana_mama, @BridgetteLA, @terpsichore

and special guest @3kidsandus

2. On April 1st at 9:00 p.m., join us on Twitter. Use hashtag #blogpopz in your tweets to follow the conversation. We suggest using www.tweedgrid.com, www.tweetchat.com or a similar program to follow along more easily.

3. Before the party, give at least one Blog Pop to anyone you'd like. You can get detailed instructions on how to give popz, register for prizes and more at www.blogpopz.com.

4. During the Popz Twitter party prizes will be given away every 15 minutes...just follow the instructions to win.

Exciting Announcement!

A 6th Blog Pop and Candy Store will be added to Blog Popz. Vote on the right sidebar for which op you'd like to see added to Blog Popz family of pops.

We're looking forward to popping with you!

Featured Blog: The Fashinoista and Foolishness

Jamie at The Fashionista and Foolishness blogs about her journey in parenting for children, ages 13-1, yup hormones to poopy diapers!

Parenting Tip: Cut yourself some slack. We are not perfect we are all human. You will make mistakes. Learn from them, grow from them. When you get stuck ask for HELP!

Blogging Tip: Look around. Get involved. Blogging has opened my eyes in so many ways. From getting to know myself better, to tips and tricks from other bloggy moms, to an outlet for frustrating and staying in touch with family and friends.

Baby Kid's Thoughts: Anyone who can manage four kids and a blog deserves to be featured! Great parenting advice I will personally take. On a side note, I love the pearls. Visit The Fashionista and Foolishness or add @kidsmeandrawiii on Twitter and say hello.

How Do You Help Your Daughter - and Family - Manage Sibling Rivalry?

by: Elizabeth Donovan from Parenting Pink

It’s about that time of day again, when the screaming, yelling, hitting, and the ever-so-popular hair-pulling, drowns out any chance you had to make dinner- or keep your sanity. “She hit me first mom!” is usually followed by “She started it!” By the end of a busy day, your patience is wearing thin and you may find yourself suddenly having the desire to jump in the car and drive somewhere far, far away from the chaos.

Sibling rivalry is part of the deal parents sign when they enlist in having more than one child. It’s as common as apple pie and juice boxes in every American household across the United States – and the world for that matter. Developmentally, sibling conflicts are necessary for children to learn how to compromise and work through their differences – characteristics that will serve them well throughout their lives. But just because it’s “good for girls” to settle their sisterly differences doesn’t mean that every fight is healthy or that tired, overworked parents want to deal with constant bickering from the moment they step foot in the house.

So try these battle-tested tactics to help call an end (or near end) to girl fights.

Calling a Truce:

* Teach girls to settle things on their own. Encourage your children to work things out without your intervention. Let them know ahead of time that this is the expectation and that there is to be no hitting, biting, property damage, or name calling. The more you get entrenched in the argument, the more your children will call for you to solve their problems. Parents should not referee unless the disagreement turns physical.

* Fair is Fair. Remain a neutral country– like Sweden. Your girls will come to you with the “who started it first” argument to try to persuade you to take sides. Don’t buy into it. Treat your children fairly. Try to ask each one to listen to the other’s complaint. Help them discuss the issue together, but do not take sides unless there is a blatant violation of the rules. By remaining neutral, you can better help your children learn how to work through their differences by coming to a solution that is their own.

* Set Ground Rules. While it’s important to allow your children to settle their differences on their own, there should also be ground rules for arguments. You should never allow your children to hit, pinch, damage property (such as breaking items), or call each other names. If this occurs, step in immediately. Such behavior can potentially damage a child’s self esteem.

* Seeing is Believing. Children often imitate what they’ve been taught at home. Be aware of how you argue in front of your children. If they see the occasional fight that ends peacefully, that’s fine, but refrain from screaming, cursing, or getting physical. Your daughter will follow your example, so set a good one.

* Encourage Cooperation. Play games and do projects as a family. Talk with your children about the benefits of cooperating with each other.

* Forgo Favoritism. When punishing your children, it should be done as a group instead of individually. Most of the time it’s impossible to tell who started the argument and choosing a side will only serve to promote sibling rivalry by showing favoritism. If one gets sent to her room, then the other child should too. Resist their pleas of “it’s not fair.” Treating them equally is the fairest thing you can do.

* Give them kudos when they cooperate. It’s important to praise your children when they share and get along together. Let them know that you are proud of their behavior and give them lots of attention for it.

How can I keep my kid toys organized?

As a professional organizer, I get this question a lot. First thing is first: The big deep toy chest just doesn't work for keeping kids toys organized. Why? Because you can't have the same place for everything especially if you are going to try to find the tiny little army men among the big remote control trucks. Just like when organizing a kitchen keep like toys with like. Group them by set and by size. Avoid using containers with lids, especially if you have small children. Taking off the lid to put something away is just an extra step that will probably decrease the chances that your kids are going to put things away. See through (clear) containers are good for small toys such as matchbox cars, Barbie doll clothes, etc rather than taking the time to label the containers. If your kids like to play legos or Barbies are everywhere than invest in a container on wheels so they can put away the toys where they are playing with them. Does anyone else have good suggestions for organizing toys?? Or specific questions about organizing toys? Please share.

Melissa, an Ask Baby Kid expert, creator of Multi-tasking Mama and owner of Organized Life by Design, LLC answers your organization questions.

Featured Blog: Pretty Pink Momma

Kimberly at Pretty Pink Momma finds cool stuff, ideas, websites, products for moms, babies or toddlers and shares them with others.

Parenting Tip: Don't sweat the small stuff. I think that routines are important but there is always room for changing the routine to have some fun with friends and family. I know some moms that freak out if their child doesn't get their nap at exactly 2 p.m. or they revolve their schedule and everyone else in the family's' schedule around nap time and snack time. I think it is much better to just adapt daily to what you need to get done. A routine is awesome when you can follow it but don't freak if you need to make other plans once in awhile. Children are way more flexible than most parents give them credit for.

Blogging Tip: I am relatively new to blogging so my best tip is really just to read other people blogs and show interest in them. If you show interest in other peoples thoughts they will check you out and maybe they will become a fan of yours.

So You Want to be a Baby-Wearer?

I happen to be a big fan of babywearing, but this is one a recent thing since with my first, Ellie, I never really got into it since I didn’t know much about it. But, when Eve came along and didn’t like being up down, or put in the stroller, or a bouncer, or anything else, I decided it was time to get educated…QUICK. So, I am putting that knowledge to good use and passing the info on to you.

Why Babywearing? Babies like to be held, well most do anyway, and in order to get stuff down around the house or in order to play with your other kids, there needs to be a way to hold your baby while making it pretty “hands-free”. In comes babywearing; you can get stuff done, still have your hands, bond with you baby, and comfort him or her at the same time. A win win situation if there ever was one. I have found that there are THREE main categories of products that are great for babywearers, and here they are:

POUCH: This is a single piece of material that has been stitched together to form an over the shoulder holder with a pocket where you put the baby; you wear it like you would a messenger bag, over one shoulder. I have found that the pouch is great for small babies, say newborn through 3 months (newborn carry) and it is also great for babies who can sit up on their own and have good head control (hip carry). What to look for: good material with a little give, tight stitching.

• Pros
o Easy to use and very easy to store; doesn’t take up much space in a diaper bag.
o Affordable and there are a great many choices out there.

• Cons
o Have to get the size right since it is not adjustable.
o Not great for wearing more than 30-60 minutes at a time.
o Some pouches have too much padding

RING SLING: This is a single piece of material that has rings sewn in, which allows
the wearer to adjust to his/her comfort. Again, this is worn over the shoulder and the material spreads out to distribute weight throughout the shoulder and back. I have found the ring sling to be great for all ages, I have even been know to carry my two year old, Ellie, when she gets tired or is feeling a little neglected since Eve gets to ride all the time. There are multiple ways of carrying your child with the ring sling. What to look for: re-enforced stitching around the rings, fabric fits snugly but not tightly through the rings, easy to adjust, a little padding in the shoulder area (bonus).

• Pros
o Easy to use and very easy to adjust; fits most body types and can be custom made to specific requirements.
o You can find a good quality ring sling for very affordable prices.
o Variety of styles, colors, and sizes.
o Distribute weight well

• Cons
o Bigger than a pouch; not as easy to stuff into a diaper bag
o Shoulder can still get sore or tired after more than an hour or two of wear.

CARRIERS: This category includes everything that doesn’t fall into the pouch or ring sling category, things like the Baby Bjorn and Ergo Carrier. Carriers generally provide a little bit more structure and support around the back, hips and shoulder area and many come with accessories and other add-ons to make like cushy for your little one. I love some carriers and I really dislike some; it basically depends on how they are made and how well they fit and carry weight. Some carriers fit a certain body shape better than others. What to look for: some padding around the shoulder area, easily adjustable straps, a strap wrapping around your back and hips.

• Pros
o Generally very comfortable with a lot of padding and support.
o Good for long time wear.

• Cons
o Must find a carrier that fits YOU.
o The good carriers are generally in the $100 range, maybe a little more.
o Some carriers have been shown to not be great for baby’s back and hips, make sure you do your research!

You may have noticed that I have left out WRAPS. This is because I haven’t had the greatest of luck with wraps, although I know a great many people swear by them. You can find some great information about baby wearing online and I am always more than willing to answer any questions that you may have!!!

Some I like:
• Ergo Baby Carrier
• Hotslings
• Little Monkey Pouches
• Maya Warp Ring Sling

Mom Faves: Share Your Cool Mom Finds & Network Too

When I first found MomFaves on Twitter, I was distressed. A networking site I didn't know about? How was that possible? Turns out it was recently launched. Whew. Not completely out of the loop, and it's a good thing because MomFaves is cool. Once I got over the initial jealousy that such a good idea wasn't mine, I started to use the site. (What? You'll be jealous too!) One word, addicted. Basically you can submit a favorite anything...website, product, charity, TV show, place, recipe, etc. Then by voting on others' favs, users can check out what moms love. Part social network, part activity, and part social shopping site, MomFaves can't really be categorized. Connect with friends, especially coolbabykid, join MomFavs groups, vote on favorites and add your own. For isntance, I've recently added Gap Kids, Gipsy Kings and Coach. I'm not sure about you, but bewteen a full time teaching job, two little kiddos and three blogs I don't have a ton of time. (i.e. currently blogging at 12:02 a.m. and have to get up for work in 5.5 hours) But this is worth adding to your routine. Have you Mom Faved yet? What do you think of the site?