One of the most popular party favors is a framed picture of the party guest taken at your kids party. He or she could be showing off a silly hat or party costume, performing an outrageous party game stunt, or wearing a face full of frosting and ice cream.

Having party guests create their own make-and-take frame to display this memorable photo makes it an even greater treasure for the memory box.

Start with a plain square of cardboard with an opening the size of your picture. When the decorating is done, simply glue picture to the back of the frame.

Here’s a brainstorm of frame ideas and decorating materials kids can use:

*Cut your photo into a circle and glue to the center of a nice shiny CD. Decorate with star stickers.

*Cut frames from different colored craft foam. Layer the foam squares for a unique effect. Decorative foam pieces in many unique shapes and themes are available at your craft store.

*Make a simple craft stick frame and decorate it with faux gems, sequins, sparkles, or stickers.

*Fashion a frame with craft clay.

*Use faux craft fur to make a really “wild” looking frame. Great for a jungle themed party.

*Tie one end of a long length of colorful yarn to your cardboard square. Wrap the yarn around and around the square until it is completely covered.

*Glue tiny Barbie doll accessories such as combs, brushes, sunglasses, and purses. Ideal for a Barbie party or little girl’s dress up party.

*Brush a square of cardboard with white craft glue. Sprinkle craft sand onto the glue in different colors and patterns. Shake excess sand onto newspapers and let dry.

*Use outdoor treasures such as tiny pine cones, leaves, and small stones to make a nature frame. Perfect for a garden party or bug party.

*Colorful buttons in various sizes and shapes can be laid out in an interesting design.

*Apply geometrical shapes of felt in a creative pattern.

*Cover your frame with pretty fabric.

*Apply colored clay shapes to your cardboard square.

*Hard edible sugar decorations for cakes come in a variety of themes. These can be used to decorate your frame.

*Different shapes of macaroni make interesting frame decorations. Try elbows, wheels, bowties, and fusilli.

*Tiny colored pompoms make a cute soft frame. Apply complementary colors in rows.

*Tear off one inch pieces of multi-colored tissue paper. Pinch between fingers, dip in glue and apply to your frame.

*Small dried beans or peas laid out in intricate patterns make a unique frame.

Kids will love the hands-on party activity and parents will enjoy their child’s picture displayed in their own uniquely creative frame.

Copyright 2005 Kids Party Paradise All Rights Reserved

Patricia B. Jensen is a mother of three and kids party enthusiast. She is the webmaster and owner of href="http://www.kids-party-paradise.com">Kids-Party-Paradise.com – a complete resource for kids party ideas including invitations, cakes, decorations, games, costumes, favors, and food.

For all the latest party news, read her Kids Party Blog.

Copyright © by RaiseYourChild.org. All Rights Reserved.

Every responsible parent knows to keep cabinet doors locked so that young ones don’t have access to dangerous chemicals, but what about lead, a toxin found in many common children’s toys? How do you know if your child’s toys contain lead and what can you do to minimize their risk of exposure to this harmful substance?

Lead is a toxic metal that can have devastating effects on the mental and physical development of children. The brain and nervous system of children younger than six years old are the most at risk for lead poisoning. Even low exposure levels can produce damaging effects ranging from impaired growth and hearing, to problems with posture and behavior.

High levels of lead exposure can cause deafness, blindness, convulsions, or in rare instances, even death. Even without severe effects, children exposed to lead are more likely to experience difficulties with reading and vocabulary, attention and focus, and fine-motor coordination.

So how does lead make its way into the products that consumers buy for children? Lead is used in manufacturing in paint and plastic used to make children’s toys. Paint used in houses, on products sold for children, and on dishes has been banned from containing lead in the United States since 1978, but this regulation has not reached some countries that still export products to the US.

In those countries it is still legal to utilize lead in the production of plastic, even when the plastic is used to make children’s toys. The lead acts as a softener to make plastic more flexible, which allows it to return to its original shape. The breakdown of the chemical bond between lead and these plastics forms lead dust, a known health hazard.

You can visit your State Department of Health’s Lead Hazard Product Recall Website for information concerning toy recalls. You will also find a comprehensive list at the US Consumer Product Safety Commission website.

There are home testing kits offered that are designed to test household items, toys, soil, and dust for lead content, but these do-it-yourself kits are not recommended as reliable by The State Department of Health and the Federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Lead screening can help identify children with blood lead levels that may be dangerous. Infants that play with older toys (antique toys, toys passed down through generations, or toys made before the ban on paint with lead) and toys made in other countries may be at greater risk.

Before you buy new or used baby toys, make sure the toys that you intend to purchase do not appear on the recall list. You can even do some research about the country in which the toy is manufactured. Some stores now have information on file compiled to trace the country of origin for the toys that they sell.

You can also inspect toys that your child already plays with for chipping and peeling paint, the number one source for lead poisoning in children. Be careful when choosing colorful jewelry and toys, especially those imported from other countries.

Keeping your baby safe is a parent’s primary concern. Baby Toys Galore offers a huge selection of developmental and just-for-fun toys for baby, including many made with organic products. Baby Toys Galore encourages parents and grandparents to keep baby safe by staying informed.

Copyright © by RaiseYourChild.org. All Rights Reserved.

A hush falls over the room as you bring out your child’s birthday cake.

With its candles glowing, your cake masterpiece sits at its place of honor for all to admire as the room fills with the oohs and aahs of your envious party guests. Your creative birthday cake is wonderful and it fits your party theme perfectly.

Your birthday child makes a wish and your guests join in singing the birthday song followed by cheers and applause. Then it’s finally time to enjoy the taste of your delicious birthday cake creation.

Now that’s the kind of reaction you want for your child’s birthday cake!

Kid Birthday Cake Ideas

Let your creative imagination run wild when you plan your child’s birthday cake, because just about anything is possible. Here are just a few ideas.

Princess Birthday Cake

Skate Cake

Butterfly Cake

Ladybug Cake

Hot Dog and Fries Cake

Volcano Cake

Bug Mountain Cake

Lego Cake

Madeline’s Hat Cake

Princess Castle Cake

Green Eggs and Ham Cake

Panda Cake

Treasure Chest Cake

First Birthday Cake Ideas

Baby’s Bib Cake

Baby Cakes

Baby’s Booties

Puppy Dog Cake

Pail of Sand Cake

Like I said, when it comes to kid birthday cake ideas for your child’s party, the only limit is your imagination.

Kid Birthday Cake Recipes

Once you and your child decide what thier party theme will be, start thinking about your birthday cake masterpiece.

All it takes is a little imagination and your kid birthday cake will be a huge success!”

Author Description

Mike Dougherty has years worth of experience putting together birthday parties for his two children and now his grandchildren. Mike is webmaster for http://fun-kid-birthday-parties.com

Copyright © by RaiseYourChild.org. All Rights Reserved.

“People should not forget the true meaning of gift giving. It is the thought that really matters and not the value of the present. But in a consumer driven world, people are always trying to upstage each other’s gifts. Plus all the hype and the advertisement of so many toys in the market are getting people overwhelmed of what to give.

Gift giving should be given some thought and with a bit of imagination, great gift ideas will truly be appreciated. Learn to strike a balance between giving the toy that the child may want and the toy that the child actually needs.

The value of the present should not be measured based on the number of gifts. Most of the time, it is a better idea to invest in one expensive gift rather than on many gifts that do not exhibit any value at all. Investing in toys that would last longer would be ideal but then if your child will want a particular toy that is in fad, you can at least buy him or her even just a small version of that toy.

Try to find out what sort of interests the child has and from there you could work up ideas on what to give. For instance, if the child enjoys playing with dolls and figures choose toys that could accessorize her dolls like doll clothes, etc.

For great gift ideas for a child whether it is your own or someone else’s, go to a large toy store and ask for the toys suited for the child’s age bracket. You will find a lot of toy ideas from the latest movie toys, to the classic lego, etc. For highly creative kids, you can go for creative gift sets that allow them to get their hands involved like a bead and necklace set for the little girls or a craft set for the boys.

A great gift idea for little growing girls would be a bracelet to which you could add charms. You can always give additional charms every time there is a special occasion. Children love and enjoy computer related games but if you find these items to be a bit pricey and beyond your budget perhaps you can stick to outdoor games instead.

DVD movies and cartoons seem simple gift ideas but children love and enjoy watching their favorite film over and over again.

Wrapping your gift is as important as the content inside. Spend some time in wrapping it up perfectly in the same manner that you spent time looking for the gift.

Author Description

Jim Brown writes about Cookware Coupons, Gourmet.org Discounts, Kitchen Collection Savings and Online Kitchen Depot Deals