While teddy bears come with their own furry coat, some of them prefer to dress in different costumes to show off the many facets of their personalities. They are available for adoption in stores, gift shops and on internet sites.

One of the best disguised teddy bear is Turkey Day Teddy. He can be found at:

http://www.auntbonniesgiftbaskets.com/bearholiday.htm. Other teddy bears on this site with disguises of their own are, Happy Birthday Bear, Angel Bear, Santa Bear Teddy, Halloween Witch Bear, Halloween Pumpkin Bear, 4th of July Teddy, Easter Bunny Teddy, St. Patty’s Bear, St. Valentines Bear, and New Year’s Teddy. Each of these wonderful bears sell for $21.95.

A site offering a vast array of teddy bears in disguise, is: http://www.vtone.com/teddybearsholiday.htm. They have Biker Bears, a Patriot Collection, and a Military Collection, to name a few. The site also offers holiday teddy bears and is a great place for those who love dressed teddy bears.

A great site with bears dressed in costume for the holidays would be: http://abgb.stores.yahoo.net/holtedbear.html. Hope, is a bear dressed in a pilgrim outfit, her counterpart, Jacob, is also a 12″ bear dressed in pilgrim costume. Valentine teddy bear, arrives carrying a bracelet asking, ‘ Will You Be Mine?’ His costume says, ‘I Love You. Cupid bear, is a great choice to send your significant other. Other bears available are, Mr. & Mrs. Clause, Irish Bears, Bears in bunny disguises for Easter, a Graduation bear and a birthday bear in a clown outfit.

For a wonderful experience visit, http://shop.vermontteddybear.com/. There you will find many wonderful dressed bears for your adoption approval.

At, http://plushteddybears.com/product.php/bpb/75220.html, you will find many dressed bears from famous teddy bear makers.

Send a dressed bear for any occasion at, www.giftsbearsetc.com. This site offers many unique gift baskets that include teddy bears.

The site, www.offerasmile.com, offers various specialty teddy bears for sale. If, after seeing the bears on this site, you still can’t find that special bear, you can make costumes and disguises for any bear with sewing, knitting and crocheting patterns. These sites are plentiful on the internet.

You may want to choose a bear of distinction and dress them yourself. Whether you choose to make the costumes yourself or purchase what your bear will wear, you might want to check out these sites.

www.buildabear.com is an excellent site to choose a bear and dress it as you like right down to the shoes. Go to the site to find the nearest Build-A-Bear Workshop near you.

At, www.tbears.de, you will find the most unique one of a kind, and limited edition bears I have ever seen. This teddy bear artist spends hours on each bear’s face to give them a real personality. This site is a must for teddy bear enthusiasts. Hurry, these teddies sell like hotcakes.

There are some pretty unique bears on, www.designsbyterri.com. These are miniature teddy bears and one of them, Domino, comes with his own die cast pedal car.

Whether you decide to buy an already dressed teddy or do it yourself, I’m sure you will find the perfect teddy bear at one, or more, of these sites.

As summer draws to a close and the time to buckle down and start school approaches one of the things that we need to start thinking about is how we’re going to get our children to school. In most areas that means choosing one of two options. We can either drive our children to school or they can ride the local school bus system. Each way has it’s own pros and cons so most of the time it’s a matter of personal preference. Which option is going to work the best for you and your family?

The first and most commonly used option is for children to ride the bus to school. This has traditionally been the way that most children get to school. This is a good option for a couple of reasons. The first is the fact that with rising gas costs it can get extremely expensive to drive your child to school every day. It saves you from having to take the time for the drive which can be a plus especially in the morning when you are rushing off to your own job. There’s also the added value of them being able to spend time with friends during the bus ride which gives them social time.

On the other hand your child riding the can have some serious disadvantages also. There’s no flexibility in the schedule so you have to have your child at the bus stop at the proper time very morning or they won’t make it on the bus. This can be hard in household where both parents work and have to leave work every morning to go to work. There’s also the fact that while school bus drivers do their best to be safe you never know what can happen and accidents are always possible. Add in the fact that it’s only one bus driver for a whole bus of children meaning they are not always very well supervised and it’s not a situation that’s right for very family and every child.

Then there’s the option of driving our children to school. This option works great for some families especially if the school the child attends happens to be near a parents workplace. It gives more bonding time to the parent and child by allowing them to have time together to talk both before and after school. This leads to a greater understanding and better communication which is always a positive thing in the parental relationship. It also helps give time to go over schedules so that the parent knows exactly where their child is going to be at during the day.

The down sides to driving you children to school are the amount of time that it can take out of your schedule and the cost of the gas to drive. There are some ways around those problems though. One of the most common ways around these problems is to arrange a carpool with other parents. Put an ad out and see if there are any parents near you that are facing the same problems and see if maybe together you can find a solution to the problem.

There are different ways to handle the situation of having to get your child to school. It can be difficult to figure out at first but if you take the time to think about things and research your options you can find a good solution for your problems.

Dinosaurs have invaded the world for centuries now. Though they were gone thousands of years already, everybody still thinks and is threatened about them. As a matter of fact, they were even considered as one of the most dangerous animals that ever existed on Earth. And that is greatly emphasized on the movie series, Jurassic Park.

However, despite their strong personality and cruelty, some kids adore them. It is really amazing to see children who like dinosaurs. Most of them love hearing funny stories about dinosaurs. Some even imagine possessing one for a pet, while others are so excited to listen for accurate information about these dinosaurs. Because of this, the number of dinosaur stories for children in the market is constantly increasing.

Most parents are not sure about what is in dinosaurs that makes their children fascinated about them. Dinosaur books are even continuously making appealing sales. Most of the dinosaur stories for kids are intended for fun. However, there are also non-fiction stories for kids who are eager to know everything about dinosaurs.

Below is a list of dinosaur stories. Young kids with a great interest in dinosaurs will surely enjoy the following books especially if you read it to them aloud.

* Dinosaur Named Sue

This is a non-fiction book that will really interest kids who are eager to know about the study of dinosaurs. It has an appealing writing style and colorful photographs which young children from 9 to 12 years old will surely love.

* Digging for Bird Dinosaurs

This book is consists of 48 pages. Digging for Bird Dinosaurs is a product of a paleontologist who had an expedition to Madagascar in search for bird dinosaurs’ fossils. It has colorful photographs that are suitable for children ages 8 to 12 years old.

* E. guides: Dinosaur

This book is intended for the serious readers of dinosaur stories. It can be used as a reference book in school or dependable internet resources. This book is consists of 96 pages and it includes factual details about dinosaurs. E. guides: Dinosaur is appropriate for children ages 9-14 years old.

* Dinosaurs

This book is ideal for children who at the age of 3 to 4 years are already fanatical with dinosaurs. It features 2 pages of different dinosaurs with pictures of realistic models, text and smaller illustrations. The information included in the books talks about the appearance, size and eating habits of the dinosaurs.

* Searching for Velociraptor

This 32-page book is written by two paleontologists who made an expedition in search for Velociraptor. It features over three dozen of color photographs. The highlights of this book include the search for fossils, success on the last day of expedition and digging of the Velociraptor skeleton.

* How do Dinosaurs say Goodnight?

This book is ideal to read during bedtime. It talks about a family of dinosaur, practicing about the bad and good bedtime behavior. This story can be a perfect example to children who always miss to say good night to their parents before sleeping.

* Dinosaur!

This is a picture book that is suitable for 3 to 5 year olds. Though it has simple and very childlike illustrations, the book is still very comprehensive and colorful.

With this simple list of dinosaur stories, you will never find it hard to look for the one that will suit your children’s taste.

Among the solutions parents and specialists have already found for convincing children of all ages to get accustomed to urinating and defecating in the potty, there is also the approach that uses potty training charts. If you are unhappy that you cannot convince your child to use the potty or the toilet and give up nappies, you should know that there are lots of other parents in the world who have found the answer to this problem and who share their experiences on the internet.

Just do some research and you will find the right solution for your child. In as far as using potty training charts is concerned, you can find not only stories, information and advice or how to… instructions, but also a lot of sites that provide you with printable potty training charts.

Actually, there are incredibly numerous potty training charts for you to choose from and use with your children. Stores, specialists in the field as well as individuals have designed various potty training charts to suit different age groups, styles and preferences, gender, etc. Thus, there are potty training charts especially designed for boys and for girls. The difference in potty training charts is made through different colors or different patterns and drawings.

Therefore you can find boys’ potty training charts in which blue is the dominant color and the drawings are mainly cars, rockets and other boy stuff. Consequently girls’ potty training charts will mainly be colored in red or pink and will feature dolls, princesses and other girl things.

When you decide to use potty training charts you can either create them yourselves or together with your child, or you can choose from the wide existing variety. Besides the paper and card and stickers potty training charts you might also find magnetic boards or strips that you can attach on the fridge or other metal objects in the house.

Anyway, how do potty training charts work? What can they do to convince Junior to pee-pee and poo-poo in the potty? The principle by which potty training charts work is to a certain extent based on the idea of rewarding the child for something s/he does, except they do not get to spoil the child as if in actually rewarding them by giving them some candies or other things they want.

After you decide to use potty training charts, you must establish a set of very clear use about applying the method and let everybody in the family know what these rules are, in order to get consistence in using it. Every time the child does the thing properly, show him/her how it is rewarded with a sticker placed on the chart.

At the end of the chart place a shiny star in the last square and let the child see that that is the great prize for completing the cycle.

Birth is a physically stressful experience for your baby, especially if the delivery is natural or assisted. The force of being pushed through the birth canal can leave his tiny body out of alignment, not all that unlike the misalignment that causes millions of Americans to seek chiropractic care each year.

What does this misalignment mean for your baby? Research suggests it may be responsible for common conditions like irritability, colic, and feeding problems in infants. Chiropractic provides a natural approach to alleviating these conditions and keeping your child healthy.

Why does your baby need a chiropra

Doctor? Chiropractors diagnose and treat subluxation. A subluxation is a misalignment of the spine that occurs when one or more of the vertebrae move out of position and put pressure on spinal nerves. This pressure interferes with the ability of your nervous system to effectively transmit nerve impulses to various parts of the body. When the nerves can’t transmit messages well, your body cannot function optimally. As a result, you develop symptoms that depend on which nerve is being irritated or compressed. A chiropractor is a doctor specially trained to locate these misalignments and correct them through gentle manipulation.

When your baby is born, his body must rotate and flex as baby finds his way through the birth canal. This traumatic process, though completely natural, can result in misalignment – especially of the cervical vertebrae. For your baby this could mean feeding problems, fussiness, colic, or sleep disturbances, in the short term; and in the long term, if undetected and left untreated, the consequences could be lifelong, hidden damage to a child’s nervous system.

The only way to tell if your baby’s symptoms are related to subluxation is to visit a chiropractor. A Doctor of Chiropractic can examine your child to determine if a spinal misalignment is affecting your baby’s wellbeing. If so, he can perform gentle adjustments, as light as the touch of a finger, to correct your newborn’s subluxations and relieve his discomfort. The result is a healthier, happier baby.

To determine if chiropractic could help your baby, you can contact the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association to find a doctor. Members of ICPA are Doctors of Chiropractic who go on for specialized training in specific techniques for pregnant mothers, infants, and children. The association offers a Chiropractor locator on its website www.icpa4kids.com.

You want the best for your newborn and that includes optimum health. Chiropractic care provides a natural alternative for treating common newborn problems. And a gentle adjustment just may make a dramatic difference.

For those of you who would like to step out of the ordinary, here is an idea. Instead of buying a teddy bear that everyone can get, why not go to a teddy bear artist and get a teddy bear that is unique?

After all, this teddy bear will be your, or your child’s, best friend for many years. How often is it, that one can pick just what their best friend will look like?

The web site, www.bearpile.com, provides links to teddy bear artists. This site was founded by Dave Stack and he runs it out of his 1903 Victorian home in Cleveland, Ohio. Teddy bear artist, Emma-Louise Braiden, Sells one of a kind bears, many of which have already been adopted. Some of her available friends are:

Baby Jeremy is made in two different mohair fabrics, and is fully lock-nut jointed so that he can pose in the positions a baby would. He is not overfilled with polyfill so he feels more like a baby. Jeremy also has a heap of stainless steel shot in him to make him more the weight of a baby. When you hold him you will need to support his head, but when he sits he is able to hold his head like a much older child. Baby Jeremy comes with baby booties on his feet and his own toy. A string jointed bunny.

‘TATE’ is a 12 inch wacky panda created by Jaqui Ellerton from Jac-q-lyn Bears, in the United Kingdom. He is made from black and cream, matted, curly, German, mohair fabrics. His face, inner ears and paw pads are made from, beige, cashmere fabric. TATE is fully jointed and is number 1 in a series of 5. This soft, cuddly, unique teddy bear is up for adoption. Another great site featuring teddy bear artists is, www.teddybearsden.com.

This site has links to the web sites of many talented teddy bear artists. Susan Bartlett is the teddy bear artist, and owner of, www.adorablebears.com. She has been making her unique teddy bears for 12 years.

‘LITTLE PREP’, is a 9 inch bear stuffed with Australian wool and glass beads for weight. He is made of German ‘Kid’ Mohair and ultra suede. Little Prep is limited to only one. He is fully lock nut jointed, and his muzzle is a light beige in color to complement his milk chocolate colored fur. This teddy bear wears an oversized key as a necklace and is waiting to be adopted by you.

Truffles is a fully jointed 10 inch bear kit designed by Susan Bartlett. The kit includes a pattern and full instructions, mohair and matching ultra suede paw fabric. All joint requirement, threads and quality glass eyes are included. This kit is ideal for beginner and advanced bear makers.

These bears may cost a bit more than a teddy bear you might buy at a department store. You must remember, teddy bear artists design and make each bear by hand and many of them are one of a kind.

In any child custody case, the court decision always focuses on the “best interests” of the child. This is a great consideration whether an out-of-court settlement has been reached by both parents and their lawyers or a custody decision is made by a family court. What do the child’s best interests involve? Read on to learn more about how custody decisions are made based on this approach.

Essentially, the best interests of the child means that all discussions and decisions regarding the custody and visitation of a child are made with an ultimate goal: promoting and nurturing the security, physical and mental health, happiness, and emotional development of the child. Usually and ideally, it is in the best interest of the child to keep a close and healthy relationship with both parents. However, maintaining such a relationship can be difficult in some cases, and this can get in the way of resolving a custody dispute. If you are caught in the middle of a custody conflict, it is important that you focus on making decisions based on the best interest of your children. This will definitely affect your children’s lives and your relationship with them in the future.

There is no standard definition when it comes to a child’s best interests. To have a clear idea of what the best interest of a child really entails, it pays to know the factors that are taken into consideration in many custody cases.

* Physical and mental health of the parents
* Age and sex of child
* Wishes of the child if he or she is of the right age
* Religious considerations
* The relationship with & support from extended family of each parent
* Proof of alcohol, drug, or sexual abuse of each parent
* Emotional abuse or discipline from parents
* Stability of the home environment of each parent
* The child’s adjustment to community and school

The wishes of the child regarding his or her custody have a huge bearing in any custody decision. These preferences can affect the court decision as to who will get the custody of the child. However, it still depends on the state where the case is being heard. Under particular circumstances, some states allow the child to have a say in the hearings. In other states, the courts have the discretion to determine how much relevance it will put on the child’s preference regarding his or her custody.

The child must be legally competent to testify in court, meaning he or she understands what the child custody hearings are all about and knows the difference between truth and lies. When a child testifies in court, the judge does not directly ask the child if he or she would want to live with the father or the mother. Rather, the child is asked in a conversational manner to talk about life in school and home.

Oftentimes, the courts appoint a lawyer to represent the child. This setup allows the child to participate in the hearings without the unnecessary stress and tension of the courtroom.

Why does Lisa grumble when it is time for her to go for her piano lessons? How come Johnny abhors the sight of his skates now? After all, these children were very enthusiastic about the programs when they started off. What happened? Parents are often confused by the disturbing and often incongruous signals they receive from their children. One day the kids are excited about the new theatre class and in just a few short weeks they wail and moan when it’s time to go.

The first thing a family should do when a child begins resisting a previously loved activity is to listen and investigate. Do not jump into conclusions. A little bit of intelligent sleuthing is required. Ask your child what he or she does in the class. Find out what exactly is the cause of the problem. Then ask the teachers the same questions. Compare notes. You may stumble on some important clues. Usually, children start out on an activity thinking it’s all fun. But when they realize that they cannot just hang out and that they need to follow rules etc, they begin to resist. Your child may feel stifled if the program is too structured. If the discipline is too rigorous or the activity too painful (like a karate class) some children balk. Use your own instincts. Does the program feel like fun? Would you want to attend it yourself? Are they offering enough motivation to keep the child interested?

The teacher-to-child ratio is also an important factor. Children need attention. If the number of teachers is just enough to handle a class, it is possible that your child is not receiving enough attention. State recommendations usually specify that there must be 1 teacher for 15 children.

Children try to avoid problems they cannot solve. If there are no perceivable problems with the class and the teachers, perhaps you need to have a chat with your child. If your judgment says that the place is good and the activity engaging enough, then it’s time to work with your child. More often than not, social pressures may be at work here. Does your child have friends there? If she is lonely or miserable because of the lack of friends, help her find a friend. If she finds a friend, she will get more involved in the activities

If your best efforts do not pay off, and your child still resists that fantastic guitar classes, then it’s time to let go. Shift your child to some other program. If he or she still retains interest in guitars, you can take it up after a few months. Never force the child, especially when it comes to extra-curricular activities. Since they are ‘extra’, they must bring in extra happiness and extra enthusiasm too.

The search for the best teddy bear, does not end at one certain destination. It is more a personal search to find the teddy bear that is best for you. What others find adorable in a teddy bear, may not be the same characteristics you look for. Many teddy bear lovers find it difficult to decide on just one bear to adopt. They choose to open their hearts, and their homes, to several teddy bears.

You can see a wonderful collection at: www.bearhollow.net. This collector has opened every room in her home, and some outdoor areas, to her extended bear family. There are a few rooms just for the teddy bears. There are several sites like this one, and you may visit them to see what a great idea teddy bear collecting can be.

When you are looking for that special bear you have an obligation to yourself to take a look at the sites of teddy bear artists. These talented artists design and make teddy bears from scratch. So many of the bears they offer have a their own unique look and personality. The teddy bears on, www.tbears.de, are the some of the most expressive, unique teddy bears you will find anywhere. The Lovable Fellows are one-of-a-kind or limited editions. Hours are spent creating each bears face. This gives each bear his own personality traits. If you want to adopt one of these Lovable Fellows you should check them out quickly. Most of the teddy bears on this site have already been adopted. At, www.theoriginalpakabear.com, the Paka Bears are made from super soft, natural Alpaca. Each bear is handmade and unique. The teddy bears come in many different colors and some of them are multi-colored. This site is a must-see.

When you step into the website at, www.settlerbears.com.au, you will see a great number of unique teddy bears based on the Outback, the Great Dividing Ranges, the Great Barrier Reef, the Rainforests and other areas in Australia. This site offers teddy bear collections, as well as, other beary interesting stuffed friends.

The web site, www.designsbyterri.com, is a fantastic place to find miniature teddy bears. Domino, is a 2 3/4″ tall bent knee bear of black and white, made of upholstery velvet. This tiny teddy comes with his own die cast, taxi pedal car.

Another site to see when it comes to one of a kind teddies is, www.tailoredteddies.com. This site has many fantastic bears and is one you don’t want to miss.

Not only can you find that special bear on one of these sites, you may want to try your hand at making your own teddy bear.

You will find pattern packs with instructions, nut and bolt joints, 1 pair of eyes, and a complete materials list at: http://www.christiebears.co.uk/acatalog/Patterns.html. Materials and accessories for bear making are also available on this site.

Teddy bear patterns, with complete material list, can be purchased for $10 each at: http://www.judilynndesigns.com/Rumbles.html.

You will find teddy patterns, kits, and materials for making teddy bears if you go to: www.admiral-bears.com.

Raising children is hard. Not only do you need to teach them the right set of values and help them grow to be good responsible adults, you also need to provide for their every needs and even pay for their education. For a couple, this is already difficult. How many times have we heard of stories of couples not sleeping at night because they need to take care of their baby? How many times have we heard stories of parents complaining about their financial situation? Between having to pay for the house rent and paying for medical check-ups and milk, taking care of a kid can be very expensive. But what more if you are the only one bearing the responsibility? How hard can it be?

Single parenting is a reality in the United States and even all over the world. More and more people are taking care of their babies on their own. People now no longer see marriage as a requirement and a necessity when there’s a baby. Now, they can choose to raise their babies together or alone. For some, raising them alone is a better choice. Although it is hard, there is little heartbreak involved here because it is their choice to raise their babies alone.

This is especially true for those who have gotten pregnant by accident. Often, these single parents are young mothers who are either in high school or in college. Some are also already working. For young single parents like these, the support of their parents are crucial as well as the community in general. Although it is a reality that we see everywhere, some communities especially in small towns still look down on young mothers or fathers.

More and more couples are also deciding to separate for various reasons and often, the task of raising the child falls on either of the partner. This is not only because they want to but because it is also not good for the child to be constantly uprooted. Children, while they are growing up, need a stable home environment. For these people, single parenting is a lot easier because the responsibility is shared by both partners even if the child lives with only one.

Some are not so fortunate though. For some, it is not even a choice but a fact of life because the other partner does not take responsibility anymore. These are the partners who have decided to turn their backs on their parental duties and have lived single lives. For their partners, the task of taking care of the child is even harder because there is no support from the other partner and because it is also not their choice to assume the responsibility alone, this can be a pretty hard situation to be in.

This can happen to those who have gotten pregnant before marriage or those who have gotten married and then got divorced. Again, for these people, the support of their parents, their friends and the community in general is very important.