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BabyChatter Ezine
Baby Names, Baby Freebies, Coupons & Offers, &
Parenting and Baby Information
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November 16, 2001, Issue 51
Teri Hanson, Editor, info@babychatter.com

By subscription only! Welcome to your next issue of “BabyChatter Ezine”.
You are receiving this newsletter because you requested a subscription. Unsubscribe instructions are at the end of this newsletter. We value our subscribers and respect your right to privacy; therefore, our subscriber list is not made available to anyone.

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IN THIS ISSUE
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=> Welcome
=> Sponsorship Notice
=> This Week’s Freebies, Deals and Fun
=> Feature Article: Choosing Christmas Gifts For Your Child
=> How to Be Featured as our Guest Columnist
=> Advertisements
=> Disclaimer

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WELCOME
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Welcome all new subscribers to the BabyChatter Ezine! For those of you who have been around awhile, thank you for subscribing to our free ezine.

Check out our reading room if you haven’t done so. You’ll find really good articles on parenting and pregnancy.
https://www.babychatter.com/readingroom.html

You may view all archived ezine publications of the BabyChatter Ezine at: https://www.babychatter.com/ezine.html

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SPONSORSHIP NOTICE
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US Residents! Get FREE Quotes for Life, Health, Disability and Long Term Care Insurance. Affordable rates and it doesn’t cost you anything to get a quote.

If you would like your site listed here, our advertising rates can be found at:

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FREEBIES, DEALS AND FUN
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Find out why people are banking their baby’s cord blood. It can save your life! Check out why you shouldn’t throw away your baby’s umbilical cord. Get a free information kit and a FREE Baby Planning Web-CD. This is very interesting information and well worth getting!

AmazingBargains – Tons of coupons and online deals. An excellent site to visit!

Free Child Magazine – Get a FREE 1 year subscription to Child Magazine. Pay only $3.95 for processing.

1.8 million children are reported missing every year! The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) recommends keeping current and comprehensive identification records of your children. In the event of an emergency, the records will aid authorities in their search.

Receive a FREE Child ID Kit. (There is an $8.95 charge to ship)

To empower parents in the event of an emergency, we are giving away 100,000 FREE Child ID Kits. The ID Kit will allow you to have current comprehensive details of your children on file.

There is an $8.95 charge for shipping and handling, but this kit is well worth it. It includes the following:

Information folder to record comprehensive details
(birthmarks, dental records, blood type etc)
Fingerprinting inkpad and finger chart
DNA hair sample container
35mm camera to take current photos
Roll of Konica color film
Free scanning and online photo storage
Coupon for a free set of Kodak prints
Detailed child safety information
One kit covers one child (limit of three kits per order)

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FEATURE ARTICLE
Choosing Christmas Gifts For Your Child
By Heidi Hoff
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The other day a friend and I were enjoying a cup of tea when she picked up a brochure from my kitchen table put out by a major toy manufacturer and started to leaf through it. “Look at this” she said, “underneath every toy there are two boxes to check, either “want it or got it”, what could be more intimidating?” Every year you look at the over abundance of toys stuffed into toy boxes, in closets, on bookshelves and anywhere else you can find room to store them and wonder, “what more can my child possibly need?”

It’s true that today’s children have more toys than ever before but we only have ourselves to blame. Must we give in to every ad telling us our child will be deprived if they don’t have the newest and the best? I know this year I am rethinking what my children will receive from my husband and myself and these are the steps that I’m following:

1. I am going to go through all the children’s toys and separate them into these categories:
• Broken or missing pieces
• Has been outgrown but is still in good condition to donate to a charity
• Keep in the storage space for my grandchildren (!)
• Still popular and stimulating

I will also keep a large garbage bag by my side and be merciless at what I throw out. My children have so much that they have never asked me where anything is after I’ve thrown it away.

2. Every time my daughters see something on television that they would like, instead of shouting “I want that!” they say “Can I put that on my list?” My girls are five and two-and-a-half and believe me, they can’t remember what goes on the list and what doesn’t, it’s just not as annoying for me to listen to them greedily want everything they see. I also get a sense of what they would really like by how often they talk about it, though the Poo-Chi Emily wanted so desperately last Christmas is collecting dust on her dresser.

3. If they receive duplicate gifts on their birthdays they put them away and donate them to the Christmas bureau. Hopefully this will make them aware that there are children who don’t have a lot and teaches them what giving is all about.

4. My husband and I focus on items the kids can use to express their creativity with or learn something from. Paints, books and craft items are simple but popular. Last Christmas my five-year-old’s favorite gift was a bag of brightly colored feathers; I’m not kidding! That bag of feathers cost only two dollars but decorated every project she made throughout the whole year.

5. You can make items like microscopes and globes fun! Last year my mother-in-law bought my daughter a globe and it’s one of her favorite things. She loves to look for different countries where friends and family live. Emily also finds it fun to learn about the different customs and lifestyles of children around the world.

6. If relatives ask what they can buy for the children I usually suggest gift certificates to the local toy, craft or children’s clothing store. I like to give the kids an opportunity to pick something for themselves and don’t veto it even though it might be a package of shiny purple fake fingernails.

7. I try to put some gifts aside to be played with at a later date. Tearing open packages and playing a little with everything takes away the newness. Videos and games are perfect items to keep in the closet for a rainy day.

8. I also try to balance the types of items I buy and throw in a few surprises. Every parent knows their own child’s interests. Sometimes the surprises go over well, sometimes they don’t but it’s always worth the gamble. Stores that specialize in educational toys are my favorite because I know that everything they sell will benefit my children in some way. They also carry items that are not always found in regular toy departments, making them unique and ideal for those surprises.

9. I also like to put together kits for the kids geared towards their own interests. It’s exciting to pick a theme and center little gifts on it; packaging it in an inexpensive container or bag. It’s kind of like a little treasure chest when they open it!

10. Because I start my Christmas shopping so early I tend to go overboard. If I feel I’ve bought too much I either give it away or return it to the store. My family has cut back too; we no longer participate in a children’s gift exchange, preferring to spend the time together enjoying each other’s company instead. After all, isn’t that what the holidays are all about?

Heidi Hoff is a freelance writer and publisher of Preschool Planet, an ezine for parents and care givers of preschool aged children. She is also the author of the ebook: “The Play Date Handbook”.

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If you would like to be a Guest Columnist, please email us: info@babychatter.com
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If you would like your site listed here, our advertising rates can be found at:
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This publication is Copyright (c) 2001 BabyChatter.com, White Plains, MD, USA
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DISCLAIMER
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BabyChatter.com strives for accuracy in its web site and ezine content, material and information. BabyChatter.com or its authors are not responsible for any misprints, incorrect information, typographical errors, misstatements, or omissions in any of the content, material and information provided. BabyChatter will not be responsible for any results achieved from the interpretation or use of such information.

The Subscriber is hereby put on notice that by subscribing and reading the BabyChatter Ezine, they will assume any and all risks in subscribing to the ezine and information contained in this ezine. We will not be held responsible for the promises and claims made by any business not our own.