Nickelodeon's Danny Phantom - Season 1

High school is tough for even the most confident of kids, but imagine having to go through these years with ghost-hunting-scientific parents and your own special ability to change into a ghost!  Thanks to a freak accident in his parent's lab, Danny is left with an alter ego and a tonne of adventures.

Danny Fenton aka Danny Phantom is set to keep your cartoon loving kids glued to the television with 20 spooky, action-packed episodes.  Danny isn't alone in his quest for ghosts either, his best friends Tucker and Sam join him for all the hilarity. 

Danny Phantom hit the cartoon scene in 2004 and has only gained in popularity.  Kids haven't experienced this cool dude yet?  Check out Nickelodeon's Danny Phantom and other DVD's at; Shout Kids Factory

Superkid Saves the Day - a Review

Superkid Saves the Day in more ways than one.  Superkid helps children sort out their emotions in eleven different stories.  From feelings of anger, jealousy, eating healthy and listening to others, Superkid will guide your youngster and educate them in a fun and loving way.

In addition, Superkid teaches how to breathe deeply to gain more control of your emotions and also to calm tense moments - a lesson that is sure to last a lifetime!

Author Janai Lowenstein has written about common situations that children may have already experienced and can relate to.  Superkid Saves the Day is also an interactive read (asking pointed questions throughout) so parents and/or teachers can open up a path to deep, meaningful discussions.

The illustrations by Yan Jiang are bright and simply adorable - you're kids will love them!

Check out Superkid Saves the Day at; http://www.childstress.org/

The Lost Fountain - A Review

When a child is born with a serious condition it not only affects his parents, but his siblings as well. 

When Noah's mother was giving birth to his baby brother he is overcome by jealousy and wishes his brother dead.  However, when his little brother is diagnosed with Progeria (a disease that rapidly ages its victims) Noah is struck with guilt and an overwhelming drive to help his brother.  But where can a twelve year old turn to find a cure for an incurable disease?  Find out in, The Lost Fountain by Peter Andrew Sacco.

This book takes a unlikely trio of boys on the adventure of a lifetime; to find the mythical Fountain of Youth.  Sacco's characters are real-to-life and draws the reader into their world of mystery, suspense and adventure - think "Indiana Jones meets Harry Potter."

I loved this book (and I'm not just saying that because Sacco is a fellow Canadian).  The Fountain of Youth is engaging and will have your tween reading under the covers with a flashlight late into the night. 

Move over Indiana and Harry Potter there's a new hero in town!

Check out, The Lost Fountain on Peter Sacco's web site and on Amazon

Is the Economy Killing Fatherhood?



Advocate Reveals Ways to Be A Better Father in Trying Times

Tom Watson knows what it’s like not to have time to spend with your kids.  "It used to sting me when I was working hard at building my business and I’d hear my kids talking about me," he said. "One would ask the other to see if I had time to play with them, and the other would tell him not to bother, because he knew I’d be too busy. It was like a knife in my heart. With the economy as tight as it is, I know that I’m not the only father with the same issue. These days, many fathers are either unemployed and working hard to find work or they are working two jobs or more just to make ends meet. Either they don’t have much time for family, or they just aren’t in the mood for family because they are despondent or feeling helpless as a provider."

But, it doesn’t have to be that way, according to Watson, author of the autobiographical Man Shoes: The Journey to Becoming a Better Man, Husband & Father (http://www.manshoes.net/).

Watson’s tips for dads in a tough economy include:

Share Time

– Don’t spend time with your kids, because that term makes it sound like you are giving away time that you could be using for other things. Share time with them, because sharing indicates that you both get something out of that time. It’s important for your kids to know that you aren’t paying attention to them out of obligation, but rather, because you need to be with them as much as they need to be with you.

Make a Schedule

– Stability and security are important to kids, so set up a time every week that is just for them, and do your best to make that time on your calendar immovable. Give them something they can look forward to on a regular schedule and it will show them how important they are to you and help you build a trusting relationship with them.

A Little Time is Better Than None

– If you’re working two jobs or work out of town and commute home on the weekends, they will understand if you don’t have a lot of time to spend. Even if you can only block out a couple of hours every week, that can be enough. As long as you keep to the schedule and don’t let them down, that time will be as valuable as if you spent the entire weekend with them.

Don’t Plan Big

– Parents who work a lot sometimes feel guilty about neglecting their kids, and they cater to that guilt by making big plans with their kids on a regular basis. They feel that doing something lavish and expensive will somehow be seen as a payback to their kids for not seeing them often. The pitfall is that the bigger the plan, the bigger the expectation. The truth is, kids don’t care. You don’t have to spend a lot of money or make big plans all the time. It could be as simple as going to the park to fly kites and eating a brown bag lunch together, and most kids would be happy with that.

"Life is a choice and the person you choose to be is in your control. No matter the hand you may have been dealt, there are no excuses," Watson added. "I grew up as an orphan and I acted out a lot, because I lacked the guidance of a family until I was finally adopted," he said.

"And even when I found stability with my adoptive parents, the Watsons, it took some time for me to settle down. Having shoes on my feet, clothes on my back and food on the table were all good things, but it wasn’t those things that soothed me as a child. It was the time, love and attention I received from the Watsons that put me back on course and that’s what every child needs. While it may seem to some that working hard to provide for their families is their primary responsibility as a father, that’s just not so. Children are adaptable and can do without material things more easily than they can do without the love and attention of their parents. If my experience meant anything to me, it showed me that it takes more to be a dad than to just bring home the bacon. It’s not enough to just do for your children – you have to be with them, too."

About Tom Watson

Tom Watson is a survivor of child abuse, upheaval and 13 foster homes, so he learned how to overcome adversity at an early age. Later in life, Tom was faced with heartbreaking tragedies which threatened to destroy him. He drew from previous life lessons to persevere and show that new beginnings are possible at any age or stage of life - no matter what obstacles get in the way. These principles and their applications are chronicled in his new book Man Shoes: The Journey to Becoming a Better Man, Husband & Father (http://www.manshoes.net/).

How Self Esteem Can Be More Powerful Than Bullies

Dr. Bill Page would rather teach than do just about anything else any day of the week.

“During my career I was an educator and administrator in elementary, middle and high schools, as well as college, for 33 years,” Page said. “During that time I enjoyed serving as a Boy and Cub Scout master, and a Sunday school teacher. Through all that time, I have seen just about everything children can experience, both positive and negative, and helped these kids solve what many today see as practically unsolvable problems. For the most part, I didn’t have any special technology or divine wisdom. All I had was the head on my shoulders and the heart beating in my chest, and for 33 years those were the only tools I needed.”

Page, a PhD who in retirement became a children’s book author known as Billy D, said that he has dealt with the absolute worst kids in his school and the best ones, too. In most cases, he said that they were one and the same, just on different days.

“It doesn’t take a PhD to figure out why a kid bullies another kid, or why that kid lets the other one bully him,” said Page, author of the children’s book series The Marion Series (http://www.billydbooks.com/).

“Both kids are scared of something. The kid who is being bullied is afraid of getting beat up, and the bully is afraid of most everything. The secret is being able to connect with them and figure out what both kids are afraid of and helping them face and defeat those fears. The heart of the matter is really one of the most basic truths I know: every child is special. If you want to prevent problems, then parents and teachers simply need to remind kids of this fact on a regular basis. If you tell them often enough, they’ll begin to believe it and feel it, too.”

But as much as Page is an idealist, he also knows he has to channel that idealism to kids through some harsh realism.

“I put the characters in my books through some paces,” he said. “They encounter the challenges of responsibility, honesty, self-pride, peer pressure, sibling rivalry, and race relations. They experience the consequences of drug use, over-confidence and facing ridicule. On the other hand, my characters also see the benefits from loving people, befriending them and cooperating with others. My characters are grounded by events that are true-to-life, so that the kids who read them, who are also dealing with the realism in their lives, can relate, understand and learn.”

In that way, Page believes kids who read his stories can unconsciously see the parallels in their own lives, and learn the same lessons his characters learn in his stories.

“Is the bully somehow less special than the bullied?” he asked. “Or are both simply good kids in a bad situation who need to see that their lives can be better if they only see how special they are and the difference they can make in other lives? We all need to know where we keep our strength, the parts of ourselves that help us overcome adversities. If our children don’t learn where those places are when they’re kids, they won’t know where to find those places as adults.”

About Bill “BillyD” Page

Bill D. Page, PhD, a.k.a. BillyD, is a graduate of Marion High School, Northern Iowa, Michigan State and St. Louis Universities. He has published two books for children ages nine to twelve, and has others for children two to six near completion. Dr. Page has been a teacher at all levels of public education from elementary through graduate school in Manson and Marion, Iowa, Lincoln Park, Michigan and adjunct professor for Western Michigan University. He lives with his wife of sixty-three years in Muskegon, Michigan. They have three children, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. He and his wife are proud to state that there have been no divorces in their immediate family, which has accumulated 181 years of marriage. (http://www.billydbooks.com/)

The Cave Monster - A Review

When Lima Bear's cousin, L.Joe Bean, is captured by the cave monster the gang jumps into action.  Whistle-Toe the rabbit brings his canteen, Lima Bear brings two swords (his own and L.Joe Bean's), Maskamal the raccoon brings his bow and arrow and a red flag to wave at the monster.

The plan is formed and soon the gang sets out to rescue their friend, but will it work?  Find out in, The Cave Monster by Thomas Weck and Peter Weck.

Once again the Weck father/son team brings a humorous tale of friendship, courage and just plain fun.  Your kids will love the kooky plan the critters come up with to capture the cave monster.  The illustrations by Len DiSalvo are beautiful and so full of details you want to just spend time looking around the pages.  In addition, there's extended learning and extra activities at the end of the story to fully engage your children.

This is a delightful, wonderful book.  The Wecks and DiSalvo have done it again.  They're the perfect combo - like PB&J!

To learn more about The Cave Monster please visit Lima Bear Press or stop by Barnes & Noble and Amazon online.