How to Make Rule Following Fun in Your Family

You’ve likely seen some version of a “Family Rules” sign for sale at a local craft fair, on display at a friend’s house, or maybe even at your own home. 

While such signs are a fun way to decorate, odds are very few people have ever looked at this piece of art as a family, contemplated what the rules mean to them, and talked about how the rules are followed and enforced within their own family.

Chances are, whether or not you have a “Family Rules” sign on display somewhere in your house, your family doesn’t have a set of rules they’ve agreed upon and follow.

Coming up with your own set of family rules is an effective way to set expectations from the time your children are young, and to mediate disagreements among siblings.

Next time you’re in search of a way to spend a little family time together, developing your own set of rules is a great project for a rainy day.

You might get a few groans at first, but here’s how you can turn this into a fun family project.

Explain the Process

If your family isn’t already familiar with the Family Rules style of pictures, browse online and show them what you’re talking about.

Tell them the goal is to create the Smith set of family rules so everyone can agree on what’s important to you as a family.

Get ideas of where to start from the numerous examples you can easily find online.

If you already have your own Family Rules picture hanging on the wall, start there. Go through each rule and talk about whether it’s important to your family and deserves a place on your personalized Family Rules list.

Brainstorm Your Family Rules

Using blank pieces of paper and markers, have each family member write one rule per page that she’d like to see included in your personalized version of the Family Rules.

Make this a fun discussion of things that are important to each person in the family, and obviously help the younger ones with putting their ideas into words.

Just because something is written on a piece of paper doesn’t mean it will go into the final product. 

At this point you’re just getting ideas. Not everyone has to agree with everything that’s written down here.

Compiling the Final List

Once you’ve spent a good amount of time brainstorming and everyone’s had a chance to figure out and write down their ideas, go through each piece of paper and group the ones that sound similar.

Your goal in compiling the final list is to make sure the rules are general enough that everyone can agree on them and they can be easily applied.

Your kids will need heavy guidance from you at this step most likely.

Determine the ones you think can be grouped together and summarized in a few words and say something like, “It looks like from reading each of these that respecting each other’s space is important. So would everyone agree that respect each other’s space should go on our final list?”

As you’re thinking about how to summarize everyone’s ideas into general rules, think about what family values are important to you, because that’s really what you’re establishing here.

Your final list can be as long or short as you want it to be, although seven to 10 rules is generally a manageable amount.

Decide How You’ll Memorialize Your Family Rules

You really do want to have your rules on display somewhere so it’s easy to remind your kids what they are, and to discuss them when a rule is broken or well done.

If you’re even the least bit crafty, or want to give it a try, you can purchase a canvas or block of wood from your local craft store and your next family project can be painting your own wall hanging.

For most of us, this won’t turn out super professional looking, but that might give it even more meaning to the members of your family.

You could also do something as simple as decorating a piece of paper, writing the list on the paper, and posting it on your refrigerator. This is not quiet as “cool” but it does make it easy if you find the need to make changes or additions.

Once you’ve had a chance to live by the Family Rules for awhile and are confident you’ve captured your family’s belief system, you can even custom order your own professionally made sign.

Instead of just “Family Rules” the sign can start something like, “In the Smith family, we . . .” and the list of rules then follow.

Enforcing the Rules

You can use the rules to remind your children when they’re straying from a rule. Say something like, “Refusing to put away those toys because you didn’t play with them goes against our rule that we’re helpful to each other.”

You can also use the rules to encourage your kids. Try to make sure some rule about going outside your comfort zone or trying new things is included so you can help your kids set big goals in their lives and cope with failures.

Finally, you can use the rules to mediate sibling disputes. When an argument breaks out, have the kids identify what rules have been broken or are being challenged and use this as a basis for resolving things.

It helps to make the rules fun too. Remember what you’re trying to do here is instill family values that your kids can carry with them forever.

One good idea is to keep a big jar somewhere close to the rules and whenever someone breaks a rule or does a good job living a rule you can put a quarter in the jar. 

Save the money to use towards some family outing or purchase.

Our Goal at Kids Party Characters

Hopefully this gives you a good idea for how to start instilling positive values in your children in a way they don’t find boring or too “grown up.” You can obviously modify this activity and build off of it in whatever ways work for your family.

At KidsPartyCharacters.com we believe in the magic of childhood and know how important it is to start setting your child up for a happy and successful life by instilling positive values and beliefs in her from a very young age.

When it’s time to live your family rules that have to do with happiness and fun, we have just what you’re looking for with a KidsPartyCharacters.com party.

We have over 200 characters for your child to choose from as his special party guest. Our characters are portrayed by trained actors who will put on an interactive show for your child and his guests.

We also have all the extras your child will love at his party, such as face painting, balloon twisting, and cotton candy.

Visit us at KidsPartyCharacters.com to see which package is right for your next party.

And be sure to connect with us on Facebook for more tips on how to raise happy, healthy kids, as well as updates on all the magic we create at children’s parties.

How I went from living in poverty to being successful owning a kids company

The Quickest Path to Success in Your Work From Home Business

Does My Business Need a Blog?

When you think of starting a traditional business, the things you’ll need for your business are pretty obvious. 

Basically, you’ll need a building, equipment and supplies, product, employees, and a marketing plan.

When it comes to starting your online business, things aren’t quite so clear. 

Fortunately, you won’t need all the things that make a new brick and mortar business financially impossible for most of us.

One of the questions that comes up a lot from new online business owners is do I need a blog?

In fact, for some people the thought of having a blog can be a barrier to taking the leap into entrepreneurship.

Blog-style writing doesn’t come naturally to most people, and the worry of, “What would I write about?” causes many to resist even attempting to blog.

Happily, the answer is no, your business doesn’t have to have a blog.

The nice thing about business opportunities today is that with an internet connection and an email address, you can start most any business.

Of course it’s not ideal, but sometimes you do what you have to do!

Having told you that you don’t have to have a blog for your business, it is an easy and cheap way to build your business when you are unknown in your market and don’t have a big advertising budget.

If that describes you, or if you’re just looking for another great way to grow your business, consider these five reasons blogging is the ideal solution.

1. Establishes Credibility

Blogging is where you show your prospects that you know what you’re talking about and should be a trusted expert in your field.

When people see you blogging consistently and providing relevant information to your industry, they come to know you as a “real” business and not just a self-proclaimed expert trying to make a buck.

Blogging is really free advertising for your business, but it’s even better than traditional paid advertising because it sells your business in a non-salesy and no-pressure way.

Instead of taking out an ad that says, “my company is the best, buy from me,” you’re simply educating your prospect and letting her move herself towards a desire to work with you.

2. Builds Relationships and Tells Your Story

More and more, business is about relationships. You’ve probably heard that people buy from people, not companies, because it’s true.

When you’re consistently talking with your prospects and customers through the blog, they’ll begin to feel like they know you. 

The ones that like you will grow to trust you and boom, you have a customer for life.

Building relationships with your blog goes beyond just educating people and building credibility.

Your blog is the place where you can share your stories with people, and put a human face on your business. 

You decide how deep you want to go here, but sharing a personal story about your kids, your crazy life, or the backstory of your business allows people to relate to you, and can build trust quicker than anything.

3. Provides Social Media Content

Naturally your business will have some presence on social media. 

We are at the point where it’s nearly literally true that everyone is on social media.

But a common struggle for business owners is not knowing what to post on social media day after day after day . . .

Blogging does you the favor of “killing two birds with one stone” (wish there was a gentler analogy to use there but you get the point).

When you write a blog post, the post itself can be shared on social media in an effort to bring in more blog readers.

Even better, because your blog posts will be longer than your social media posts generally are, you can break down one blog post into a week’s worth of content if you want to.

And your blog content can be modified to fit all your social media channels, whether it’s Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, or even YouTube where you can turn your content into slides.

It’s important to be consistent on social media but keeping up can be time consuming. Blogging solves 90% of that problem for you by allowing you to simply modify and post content you’ve already created.

4. Effective List Builder

Social media is great, but there’s truly nothing better than having your own email list of people who have invited you to appear in their Inbox. 

In terms of actually creating sales, you’ll find your email list more responsive than your social media contacts, in most cases.

Your blog is an easy, hands-off method for list building. 

On the top or sidebar of your blog and even at the end of each post you can invite your readers to sign up for your email list so they never miss a post.

You can also let them know you share content with your email list that’s your best stuff and not available to everyone else, and/or offer a relevant free gift in exchange for them signing up for your list. 

Having a blog puts the offer to sign up to your list in front of your readers every time they come to your blog, which means you’ll be building a list of your biggest fans that you can email at any time.

5. Easy to Monetize

While not everyone chooses to monetize their blog, it’s easy to do and at least something to think about for the future.

There are two easy ways to monetize your blog. 

First, you can recommend products within your blog posts that will pay you a commission when someone clicks the link in your blog and buys the product.

The easiest example of this is Amazon, where you could recommend a good book you’re reading, put the Amazon link in your blog post, and earn a little money for each person that follows your recommendation.

The commission you earn may not seem like a lot a first, but it can certainly add up when you continue to recommend relevant products and services to your readers.

Second, once your blog becomes popular you can start selling advertising. You’ve probably seen ads at the top and on the sidebar of some blogs you’ve visited.

You control the advertising and where it’s placed on your blog so you can make sure you’re only letting in reputable services you’d recommend to your readers. 

This is a completely passive way to earn money from your blog and again, it can really add up.

Need Help Starting Your Business?

Hopefully blogging sounds good to you now, at least in theory. We love our Kids Party Character blogs and the people it’s allowed us to connect with.

If you have questions about blogging, or any other aspect of starting or growing your own business, Kids Party Characters owner Cheryl Jacobs is happy to answer them and to help get you started down the road to successful entrepreneurship.

In an effort to cut down the learning curve for new and busy entrepreneurs, Cheryl’s created a membership opportunity with KidsPartyCharacters.com.

Membership gives you full business training and support from Cheryl and the Kids Party Characters team, as well as the right to use our 200+ unique costumes, an exclusive area in which to book parties, and access to our casting director and acting coach.

If you’re looking for a business that’s essentially ready to launch today, or even if you just have more questions and aren’t ready to commit to anything, schedule a no-pressure chat with Cheryl today right here, and let her walk you through what’s best for your life.

If you want to know more about KidsPartyCharacters.com and the magic we create in children’s lives, join us here on Facebook for daily updates.

Success, Happiness, and Kate Spade

How to Become Financially Independent while bringing Joy to Children

3 Strategies For Parenting Your Spirited Child

How do you know if you’ve been blessed with a “spirited child?”

Well, like most things when it comes to parenting, there is no precise definition and no two spirited children are exactly the same.

But, let’s look at some clues.

Do you find yourself getting those “looks” in public from other moms who wonder why you can’t quiet that child down?

Do your closer friends ever gently ask whether you’ve looked into an ADD or ADHD diagnosis?

Do you yourself sometimes wonder what you’re doing wrong? And why all your best parenting tricks that keep your other children on track just don’t work for this one?

These may be some clues that you’ve got a spirited child on your hands.

Spirited children can be active, loud, emotional, sensitive, creative, strong-willed, full of big ideas, have tunnel vision, and be a bit impulsive.

As a parent, raising a spirited child can be exhausting.

Let’s face it, parenting a “normal” child who responds at least by the third time you ask her to do something and doesn’t break down in tears when you look at her wrong can be tough enough some days.

While the spirited child is a true blessing, she’ll make you laugh every day and open your eyes to look at many things in new and fun ways, it does help to have some specific strategies for dealing with her highs and lows so you don’t find yourself feeling frustrated and hopeless on a daily basis.

1. Have a Routine 

While all children benefit from routine, it’s crucial for the spirited child. 

When he knows what to expect he learns that it’s non-negotiable, is just the way things are done, and he won’t think to challenge it.

Your spirited child will enjoy the stability of a routine because it makes him feel in control and safe.

You may be thinking, but my life changes every day depending on what’s going on with each kid and parent that day, which is of course totally normal.

The most important, and fortunately the easiest, times to establish a routine are in the morning and at night.

Focus on doing the same things in the same order every morning and night.

For example:

Wake up

Get dressed

Listen to a song

Eat breakfast

Brush your teeth

Both starting and ending with a routine will help your child feel balanced and ready to dive into a busy day or relax into a peaceful sleep.

If there is a lot of variety in how your child’s day goes, prepare him at the beginning of each day or week by going through what the day will look like so he’ll be aware of expectations.

For some kids it helps to have a chart where they can read and even check off what they are doing and what comes next.

You can find charts designed for this at your local toy store, or simply use a white board that’s located somewhere your child can see and easily reference.

2. Practice Mindfulness

This one may take a little practice, so start as early as you can and have patience while your spirited child learns to love this time with you.

Mindfulness is basically being non-judgmentally conscious of the present moment.

It’s a great tool to teach your spirited child because she can learn to come back to it at times when she needs to calm her emotions or handle a situation that isn’t going her way.

The best way to get your child interested in mindfulness is to bill it as some special time that the two of you are going to spend together.

For starters, it doesn’t need to be more than five minutes, and really it never needs to be more than 15 minutes.

One of the most effective mindfulness practices is just to lay down and do a body scan. 

You can choose your child’s favorite surface and start by asking her to just feel the warmth or squishiness or whatever it is she likes about that surface.

Then have her notice her breathing, then go through and have her focus on the different parts of her body.

At first it will be too much to conquer the whole body, so you may just choose to do your legs and feet one day.

Just spending a few minutes with mindfulness can calm your child (and you!) for the rest of the day.

If your child simply won’t lay still and buy into your body scan, start with mindfulness while she's doing an activity she loves.

Tell your child you’re going to pause for just five minutes and notice the feel of the grass on her toes, the warmth of the sun on her face, the buzz of the other children around you.

Whatever it is you’re doing, the point is to just stop and be with that moment.

It’s important not to point out the good or bad of anything going on, but to just feel every part of the present moment for a few minutes.

If your child is having a hard time focusing, reassure her that’s normal and just encourage her to let whatever comes into her mind pass right through and return her focus to what’s in the present moment.

Making mindfulness a fun and special part of your daily routine can be life-changing over time, and can add an important coping strategy to your child’s toolbox.

3. Discipline with Patience and Empathy

No amount of yelling, screaming, and punishing is going to be effective for the spirited child.

There are certainly times when you’ll feel like doing it, but the only thing you’ll accomplish is to make the situation worse.

And even if you were able to frighten your child into modifying his behavior, no one feels good about that and it doesn’t teach your child how to regulate himself in the future.

Spirited children respond well to natural consequences because it allows them to make mistakes and learn from them.

Natural consequences can be a bit harder as a parent because you’re allowing your child to make the bad choice and learn from it, but over time he will learn that it’s best to listen to you if he wants things to turn out in his favor at the end of the day.

Of course it will never be “perfect” with the spirited child, or with any child, but we’re just after getting the best results we can as often as possible.

The other discipline strategy that goes a long way with the spirited child is having empathy for the strong emotions he’s feeling.

Remember your child is not just choosing to be “bad” despite what the old lady in line next to you might be suggesting.

He’s hard-wired with big emotions, too big for his years a lot of times, and he often just needs a hug and some understanding from you.

Let him know that you’re in this thing together, and while this reaction or behavior isn’t okay, you’re going to work it out so that everyone’s as happy as possible with the situation.

And remember, there’s nothing your spirited child likes better than a big party . . .

A KidsPartyCharacters.com party is perfect for your spirited child.

She’ll have over 200 characters to choose from as her special party guest and will be treated to an exciting show as well as all the extras that make the party complete, like cotton candy, face painting and balloon twisting.

When it’s time to celebrate your spirited child, head over to KidsPartyCharacters.com and choose the package that’s right for you.

Also stay connected with us on Facebook for party updates as well as more tips on how to parent happy and healthy kids while keeping yourself sane in the process!

How to be a Positive Influence in Your Child’s Life

When your kids are babies and toddlers, you are their world. They depend on you to fulfill all of their physical and emotional needs.

As they get older and start school, we have mixed feelings when they start to care more about what Johnny up the street thinks than what you think.

Sometimes you wish you could interview your kids’ potential friends, and choose the ones for him that seem to be good influences in his life.

Then again, that wouldn’t teach your child anything about developing the good judgment he’ll need throughout his life, so it’s probably okay that it doesn’t work like this.

Fact is, the friends your child chooses are going to start having an increasing amount of influence over the choices he makes and how he thinks.

You obviously want to keep a guiding hand in his life, and even though he may appear to be rejecting you and your crazy, out of touch, grown up advice, fact is you can and will continue to have a big influence on him, no matter how unspoken it might be.

How do you make sure this influence is a positive one?

Sitting him down for talks about life that make his eyes roll and having him asking, “Can I go play now?” is not the best way to pass along your positive input.

Here are five less obvious ways of remaining a positive influence in his life that he will actually see as fun rather than boring grown up stuff.

1. Spend Real Time With Your Kids

Playdates and sleepovers can be such a blessing as they allow mom to get so much more done without the kids being “in your hair.”

This fact, combined with your child’s desire to spend more and more time with her friends can lead to a lifestyle where we hardly see our kids.

As tempting as this may be some days, resist the urge to make your only quality time with your kids the ride to and from soccer practice. 

Schedule date night with your kids, and if you have more than one, each child should have her own special night where the two of you do something of her choosing.

Engage in activities where you and your child are actively working towards the same goal.

This can include playing a game together, reading, doing a puzzle, making a craft, or even having your child play her new favorite song for you. 

These opportunities for your child to experience you really investing time in her will foster conversation, instill in her that she is a valuable and worthy person, and keep the two of you connected so she will come to you when she’s in serious need of some advice or guidance.

2. Maintain Family Traditions

A great way to stay connected with your kids and avoid any complaints about having family time instead of time with their friends is to maintain family traditions.

Family traditions set expectations that can cut out the resistance as your kids get older.

Instead of having to convince your child that a camping trip with the family would be fun this summer, if it’s the Smith annual summer camp fest, it will be a time full of positive memories that your child will gladly participate in each year.

These traditions can include seasonal outings like camping, apple picking, and a hunt for the perfect Christmas tree.

They can also include more “mundane” activities like always having a pancake breakfast on Sunday mornings, or taking turns going to the store with mom every Saturday afternoon.

These traditions give your child the reassurance that she always belongs to something that’s a good and positive influence — her family — even as friendships might go through rocky times and drastic changes.

3. Find the Lesson in Every Experience

Help your child navigate the fact that life isn’t fair sometimes and failure happens.

It’s important to be a good listener, to ask nonjudgmental questions that help your child figure out how to get through problems that are serious in reality, or just in his own young mind.

But it’s also important to put a spin on these experiences that he may not yet be able to see.

Teaching your child that every problem brings with it a gift or lesson he needs is an invaluable way to help your child have a happy and productive life.

There will be times he doesn’t want to hear it, but always ask during the course of any bad experience, what can you learn from this? Is there anything good that can come from this? 

Encourage your child to always find the silver lining.

Gently suggest, maybe this isn’t so bad because of X, or maybe this happened because of X, or maybe this experience will open up X for you.

Don’t preach to your child in his time of crisis, just say something like, you may not want to hear this now, but in the future think about whether this experience was good in a way because of (insert positive result).

4. Don’t Be a Dictator

Sometimes we wish for perfect children who do what we say unquestioningly.

It doesn’t appear that those children exist, which is actually a good thing.

While we obviously have to have some rules that don’t bend for the safety and protection of our kids, it’s not always a bad thing for your child to question your rules and decisions.

This doesn’t mean it’s okay for everything to be a debate, but if you’ll have patience with your child and try to avoid saying “because I said so” about too many things, it will help develop her reasoning and problem-solving skills when she can be involved in setting rules and boundaries.

Listen to her side of the argument when she disagrees and respond in a way that lets her know you value her opinions.

Explain your decisions and reasoning behind them, and allow her to come up with alternative suggestions.

Sometimes the end result will be, “You’ll understand why it has to be this way when you’re a parent,” but you’ll often work out a solution that everyone can live with.

And at the very least, your child will be practicing good decision making and thinking things through.

5. Focus on Values

Think about and really define what values you want to instill in your child. Live these values in the things you do and the way you talk to your child.

And help your child figure out what values are important to him.

As adults, we can do values exercises where we specifically sit down and just work out what’s important to us.

For children, asking them to just think it through would likely result in answers like candy, clothes, and their favorite video game.

But you can help your child develop a sense of her values that she operates from throughout her life in a more subtle way.

For example, when she’s considering whether to break plans with a friend to join the “cool kids'” last minute invitation to hang out, you can talk about whether it’s important for her to be “popular” right now among a small group of people who will have no long-term influence in her life, or whether loyalty, kindness, keeping commitments mean more.

Give examples and tell age-appropriate stories that illustrate the positive outcomes that result when we follow our intrinsic values.

As your child gets older, you can even start making a list of values she self-identifies during your discussions and encourage her to refer to them whenever she faces a challenging decision.

We Can Help!

At Kids Party Characters our focus is on creating lasting memories for your child and her party guests for years to come.

When you book your child’s birthday party with KidsPartyCharacters.com she’ll have her choice of over 200 characters to choose from as her special guest.

Our characters are portrayed by trained actors who come to put on a show for your child and her friends, not just stand in the corner and look cute.

In addition to an interactive experience with your child’s favorite character, we have all the extras kids love such as face painting, balloon artists, and cotton candy.

Make a Kids Party Characters party one of your family traditions that is guaranteed to please. Start booking your next party today by visiting us at KidsPartyCharacters.com.

Also be sure to keep up with all the fun and adventures at Kids Party Characters by joining us on Facebook for daily updates.

The One Mistake Most Work From Home Moms Make

The transition from stay at home mom to work at home mom can be a scary one.

Your decision to stop thinking about it and finally take the plunge into entrepreneurship brings with it a lot of excitement. 

But it also requires a number of adjustments for the entire family, which creates an uncomfortable uncertainty among everyone.

It can also create some significant anxiety within you, as doubts creep in about whether you’ll succeed and how you’ll look to your family if you don’t.

Every new business owner mom feels these emotions. 

And most make this costly if not fatal mistake: They view their new venture as “my business,” when in reality, it’s a “family business.”

You’ve probably had a regular job at some time in your life.

You go to work, conduct all your business there, have all your work equipment and papers there, and leave it all behind when your work hours are over and you return home.

As a work at home mom, your home is your office, which means you’re always at work, everything you need to do your work and all your work activities are done under the same roof that your family eats, sleeps, and lives in.

You can’t treat your business the same way you treated your job, it’s stressful to you and alienating to your family.

While you certainly don’t want to create an environment where your family always feels like everyone’s “at work” and your business is a 24 hour commitment, there are some ways that organizing your house around having a “family business” will help avoid this and make your business (and family!) run much smoother.

Get Everyone Involved in Your Business

Make sure everyone in the house who’s old enough to understand you run your own business from home is somehow involved in your business.

Your kids’ involvement could range from actually giving them a paying job, as we talked about yesterday, to simply having a weekly “business meeting” with them where (depending on their age) you share client stories, talk about your successes and challenges, share your social media, and/or give them lessons you’ve learned on entrepreneurship.

You have to decide what’s right for each child depending on her age, interests, strengths and weaknesses, but each child should have a role in your business that gives her an understanding of some aspect of your business.

This will make your children feel good and will cut out most of the resentment that comes at a time when your child wants your attention and you have to respond with “mommy’s working.”

If you have a spouse or partner make sure your kids see he is involved in and expressing interest in your business too. Again, this will increase their excitement and tolerance for what you do.

Establish Your Business Hours

Your entire family will resent your business if they feel like you’ve turned the home into nothing but your business.

They’ll become tired of seeing you work and tired of hearing about your work.

You can easily avoid this by establishing set business hours and physical business boundaries that everyone is aware of. 

You may even want to post these hours on the refrigerator or on the wall in your workspace so the kids don’t have to try to remember them.

If you don’t have an entire room devoted to your home office, have physical boundaries for your work, and make a rule that work doesn’t leave that space. Of course there can be the agreed upon exception that for example, if the kids want to play outside and it’s your work time you can move the work outside to supervise them.

If your work schedule varies because your kids’ schedules vary, post new hours each week and make sure your kids are aware of them.

Also talk to your family about the uncertainties of business at times, especially in the beginning.

Yes, you may have to work outside your set work hours on occasion. But when this happens, you’ll give them as much advance notice as possible, and will make up any lost time but doing something a little special such as taking a walk together or playing a family game.

Set a Family Goal

The finances of your business should be yours to deal with but you do want to have a common financial goal you all share so you can celebrate your successes with your kids.

The best way to do this is to make your goal a big family trip or big purchase for the house everyone can get excited about.

You may want to set a date for the goal, or leave it more open-ended and just have a big chart like you see on TV telethons where you can color spaces in with markers as you save money for your goal until the chart is full and all the money needed is in the bank.

This is fun for your kids and will turn them into your biggest cheerleaders.

If your business has times of struggle, and it will, this can also provide some valuable lessons to older kids as they learn about moving forward and overcoming in the face of apparent failures.

You’ll have to decide how specific to get with your kids when it comes to finances. The one thing you don’t want to do is create stress in them over money!

Want More Help?

We started off in this article talking about how scary it can be when you first dip your toe in the entrepreneurial waters.

If you haven’t started your first business, you’re obviously interested in doing so or you wouldn’t have read this far!

It’s likely fear of failure and of the unknown that’s holding you back.

Kids Party Characters founder Cheryl Jacobs knows exactly where you’re coming from. She’s walked in your shoes and navigated her way through that fear to become the owner of three successful businesses.

And now she’s here to help you shortcut your success by learning from hers.

Recognizing the time constraints moms work under when looking to start a business, Cheryl has developed a membership to KidsPartyCharacters.com that basically provides you with everything you need to push go and start making money right away.

Membership to KidsPartyCharacters.com gives you an exclusive territory in which to book parties, the right to use our 200+ unique costumes, access to our acting coach and casting director, and full training and support from Cheryl and the Kids Party Characters team.

If you think this opportunity might be a fit for you, or if you just have questions for Cheryl about starting your own business, schedule a free and friendly chat with her right here and she’ll get you headed down the right track.

Want to learn more about how fun and rewarding it is to have a Kids Party Characters business? Follow us on Facebook for daily updates.

Your Child Can Be Anything She Wants to Be

How the “Boring” Side of Your Business Can Make You More Money

When you start your own business, or think about starting your own business, there’s a lot to be excited about.

For most of us, it’s a dream come true, a chance to get paid for something we’re passionate about, a new door to some long-anticipated financial opportunities. 

How our new “baby” will effect our yearly income tax filings and what’s the most advantageous way to structure our business are issues no one tackles with much excitement, if at all.

Truth is, especially as stay at home moms, most of us go into our business with more of a “hobby” than a “business” mentality.

At least at first, I’ll just be bringing in a little side money, the thought goes, so why not just deposit it in my checking account and get on with those home renovations and vacation weekends I’ve been longing for. 

While rushing to get your new website up, yet dragging your feet about getting to the bank to set up your business account is understandable, it’s a big mistake.

Amidst all the excitement of your budding empire, two of the top things on your to-do list should be setting up a business bank account and consulting with a professional accountant.

Both of these tasks are inexpensive or even free.

Before we go on to talk about why they’re so important, let’s add a little disclaimer:

Here at Kids Party Characters, we are NOT accountants. And we didn’t ask our accountants to write this article.

We’re sharing some of the advantages of being a work at home mom that we’ve found, through consultation with our accountants.

That doesn’t mean they’ll apply to you, but they could. 

It’s certainly worth talking to an accountant about these, and other ideas she may have for maximizing the tax benefits of working from home.

What you shouldn’t, can’t, and please don’t do, is read this article and go fill out your own tax forms based on this advice.

Now that we have that out of the way . . . on to the good stuff!

Tax Benefits of Being a Business Owner

The potential financial benefits for parents who are home-based business owners are pretty fantastic and we’ll cover those in a minute.

But first, let’s look at benefits even non-parents may be able to take advantage of as small business owners.

1. The Home Office Deduction

If you have a space dedicated to your business, that means not just a chair at the kitchen table, you can take a deduction for that space.

Even better, you may also be able to deduct a percentage of your:

- Utilities

- Trash collection

- Pest control costs

- Lawn care costs (if you even have meetings at home or clients come to visit)

- Homeowner’s insurance

This home office deduction is the biggest tax advantage for non-parents.

2. Travel and Meal Expenses

Mileage, airfare, and hotel expenses are all deductible whenever you travel for business purposes.

Your meals are deductible during such travel too, as well as those you eat while “at work” during the day.

You may want to get a separate receipt for everything you purchase at the store for your lunches. This makes it easy to keep track of and document your lunch expenses.

3. Office Supplies

You probably won’t have a lot in the way of paper, staplers, and other things you commonly buy at an office supply store, but keep your receipts when you do go because it does add up.

Your major benefit here will come from bigger items you purchase such as  your computer, printer, and any software you need.

A new office chair, lamp, or desk for your office would also be deductible.

Another one people often forget is their cell phone and internet bills. If you use them 20% of the time for business, 20% of your bills are deductible.

Of course if you’re one of those rare folks that still has a landline phone, same rule would apply there.

4. Continuing Education

Ever wonder why people have seminars in the Bahamas?

Deductible business vacations are great, just be sure it’s actually business and not just a vacation where you have a one hour business meeting scheduled one day.

If you attend a seminar or conference your travel expenses and expenses while you’re there are deductible, just don’t try to include the jet ski rental or scuba excursion you took.

It’s a good idea to save the agenda and print the seminar’s sales page or whatever evidence you can get your hands on that you were engaged in business learning and or meetings for a major portion of every day.

Trade magazines, paid forums, and other professional subscriptions (online and offline) are also deductible here.

Now For the Really Good Stuff

Finally, it pays to be a parent!

The benefits of putting your kids to work in your business are incredible. And they don’t have to be of working age to do this.

Younger kids can clean and organize your office.

As they get older, your kids can take on some customer service, social media posting, transcribing, whatever their strengths are.

You may even get lucky and have your own in-house graphic designer.

Even babies and toddlers can be a part of your business if you choose to use them in your marketing. This could include having their pictures on your website, on business cards, or in other advertising.

When your kids work for you, you’ll want to pay them and have their wages go into an account you have set up for them. 

You can then get the business deduction for their wages and they can pay for things like their music lessons and sports activities using their own money!

Your Business Checking Account

Earlier we talked about opening your business checking account as one of your first tasks when setting up your business.

You’ll want to talk to your accountant, but even when you’re a tiny business, it’s probably to your advantage to set yourself up as some type of business entity such as a sole proprietor.

You’ll need a business account to do this, and keeping all your business income and expenses separate just makes it easier and avoids any confusion at tax time.

You should also have a single credit card that you devote to only business expenses for this same reason.

Want More Tips for Growing or Starting a Successful Business?

All the details that go into your business can be a little overwhelming. 

Certainly you can be successful through trial and error, but trying to go it alone and figure it all out is the death of many well-intended startups.

Having a mentor allows you to cut out most of the mistakes and go straight to the moneymaking phase of your business.

Kids Party Characters founder Cheryl Jacobs has made the mistakes and now runs three successful businesses.

Cheryl is passionate about helping other entrepreneurs experience more success in less time.

She especially understands the challenges of the work at home mom, who already has one full time job raising her children.

In an effort to cut down the learning curve for new business owners, Cheryl is offering memberships to KidsPartyCharacters.com.

Membership allows you an exclusive territory to book parties, the right to use all of Kids Party Characters costumes, and access to our acting coach and casting director.

You also get full training and support from Cheryl and the team at KidsPartyCharacters.com.

If you’d love to have a business that still allows you to be a stay at home mom, or if you’re an entrepreneur looking for a second income stream, schedule a no-pressure chat with Cheryl right here and she’ll talk you through whether this is the right opportunity for your life. 

What to see more about all the fun we have and magic we create at KidsPartyCharacters.com? Follow us on Facebook for daily updates.

The One Thing Your Child Needs More of From You

4 Kid-Friendly Ways to Celebrate the 4th of July

Water play, family time, barbecue, and fireworks are universal signs that it must be July 4th in the U.S.A.

While the kids enjoy the food and play time, 4th of July celebrations can be not-so-fun for younger kids, many of whom are either afraid of the loud booming fireworks, or frustrated that they’ve been tagged as “too little” to light the fireworks themselves.

Fortunately, there are plenty of activities available for kids of all ages that will make them feel included in the festivities and will teach them a little about the meaning behind this iconic summer holiday.

Today we’ll look at four ways to celebrate the 4th with your kids that will easily fit into whatever you already have planned.

1. Create Alternative Fireworks

Kids who are afraid of fireworks, or just want their own “gentler” version they can set off themselves can make balloon confetti fireworks, a creative idea courtesy of Martha Stewart.

All you need are balloons, a funnel, confetti, and a hand pump.

Insert the funnel into the opening of the balloon, fill it 1/4 full with confetti, and inflate the balloon with a hand pump. (Don’t try blowing it up yourself, you’ll undoubtedly inhale the confetti right out of the balloon!).

The kids can then use a straight pin or sharpened pencil to pop the balloons and watch the confetti fall.

Another good alternative for kids who may be reluctant to take hold of a flaming sparkler is to make a patriotic wand. 

You can use your imagination and whatever is available at your local craft store here, but these basic instructions will get you started. 

You’ll need a foam star, wooden dowel rod, red and blue paints, and red, white, and blue ribbons.

Paint the star blue and the dowel red (or vice versa), stick the dowel into the star after they are dry, and tie the ribbons around dowel.

Kids love streamers and will enjoy dancing around with something that doesn’t spark and potentially burn them.

Another fun option is some type of shaker that will provide the noise without being too loud or potentially dangerous. 

One easy to make shaker requires paper plates, markers and/or stickers, a stapler, and filler such as rice, popcorn, or small dried beans.

Allow the kids to decorate the paper plates with red and blue markers or festive stickers. 

Lay the filler material on one paper plate and staple another plate on top of it.

You now have a 4th of July-themed noisemaker that will last the whole night.

2. Have the Kids Make the Desserts

The Fourth of July desserts can be fun and easy, meaning the kids can help out and get credit for having made the best part of the meal.

The Red, White, and Blue Strawberry Shortcake is a popular dessert and one that some kids can tackle entirely on their own.

Here’s a simple recipe for the cake that requires only four ingredients.

Sugar cookie bars are another family favorite and you can’t go wrong with. 

They require a little more work, but come with the bonus that younger kids can help with the frosting and can use patriotic sprinkles to decorate them.

Being tasked with putting sprinkles on something sweet is guaranteed to put a smile on your child’s face. 

3. Give Some Meaning to the Holiday

Although it seems that the Fourth of July was not the day the Declaration of Independence was actually signed, nor the day the framers intended to celebrate the country’s independence, that doesn’t change the meaning behind the holiday.

And yes, many kids will roll their eyes at your attempt to give them a history lesson, but the Declaration of Independence is a big deal.

Just giving your child a basic understanding of what we’re celebrating here will give her the foundation to develop a deeper appreciation of the holiday as she grows up and experiences more.

Try using this simplified version of the Declaration of Independence, which is available as a download. Your child’s eyes are less likely to glaze over when she can actually understand the words she’s hearing or reading.

If the kids need some down time while you cook or prepare for the party, Liberty’s Kids is a great cartoon series for kids about the American Revolution that will teach your kids while they have fun.

The series is available on Amazon and can also be found on YouTube.

4. Let the Kids Handle the Decorations

Whether you’re partying at home or going to spend time with friends and family, the kids can be in charge of the patriotic decorations for the day.

Your local craft store will have a huge supply of materials that can be used to create the decorations.

One idea is to just load the kids in the car, take them to the store, and let them decide which supplies to use and what they want to make with them.

If you need a little direction, a patriotic wreath is a fun and useful craft to start with. 

You can head over to Pinterest and search “patriotic wreath for children” if you want dozens of examples. Here’s one example of an easy patriotic wreath that most kids can do with just a little adult guidance.

Another idea that will leave kids feeling good about their contribution is creating centerpieces for the tables. 

These can be as simple as:

+ Twisting together some red, white, and blue pipe cleaners and attaching beads to them, 

+ Making a ring of paper stars to go around the citronella candles that are so popular at many outdoor gatherings, or

+ Decorating large foam stars with paints, markers, and stickers.

The possibilities are limitless here and really, the  best idea is letting your child choose what he wants to do, providing guidance only when he asks for your input (or very obviously needs it!)

Happy Fourth of July From Kids Party Characters

At Kids Party Characters, we’re all about having fun and celebrating every chance we get. 

We know that each celebration has the potential to make memories that last a lifetime.

Owner Cheryl Jacobs, and the whole team at Kids Party Characters wish you and your family a safe and fun-filled Fourth of July holiday.

We look forward to seeing you at your child’s next birthday celebration, which you can start planning now at KidsPartyCharacters.com, where we take the hard work off your shoulders so you can focus on celebrating with your child and being a part of the magic we create for your child and his guests.