Sophomore: Stepping Into Maturity

I received a complimentary copy of the book, Sophomore: Stepping Into Maturity, and a promotional item to help facilitate my objective and unbiased review. 

Welcome to 10^th Grade and Navigating the Sophomore Year.  Remember those exciting and tumultuous teen years….well mine are back as I ride the roller coaster of high school with my teen daughter!  All the intense fun and drama are back from my yesterdays… with the added adrenalin kick of Starbucks and Social Media. 

Whew, she’s an amazing kid and we’re very blessed that she has a strong foundation provided by her Christian faith.  Our church community provides for an engaging high school youth program where the students participate in weekly youth group meetings, social activities as well as an annual mission trip.  Kristen has also helped to organize a special weekly Bible Study Group with some girlfriends at the local tea shop.  We were very pleased to be selected to receive a copy of Sophomore: Stepping Into Maturity by Lars Rood from Family Christian to experience and share. This is part of a complete series for Freshman, Sophomore, Junior and Senior high school students that is faith principled and action-oriented.

This wonderful 30-day devotional for sophomore students is very engaging and interactive.  The handbook offers a key concept, opportunities to consider and discuss, what the secular world often comments, action steps to apply in daily life, and Bible passages to help them dig deeper in the Word on these matters.  Rood guides the reader through thirty wonderful devotions that challenge the teens to examine themselves, their faith and important choices as they navigate the maturation process.  Rood states, “A maturing faith, in my opinion, is one that is moving toward Jesus.   It’s a faith that has legs and is going somewhere.”  This is a profound concept, in my opinion, and one that I am eager for our children to embrace.

It's true that the Sophomore year of high school is somewhat of a limbo time for kids, no longer the freshman "newbie", not yet an upper classman.  However, students can embrace this exciting time and "make it count" with life-shaping resources such as this youth ministry series.

Here is a link from Family Christian to learn more about the book:

http://www.familychristian.com/sophomore.html

Modern American Teen: Transition from Glasses to Contacts

My DD Kristen and I wanted to give you an update to her journey to contacts since becoming participating Test Drive Ambassadors for Bausch + Lomb Soflens daily disposable contact lenses. She received a complimentary 90-day supply following her eye exam and evaluation. Our eye care professional agreed that she was a great candidate to try them. Kristen returned for a fitting and lesson in use and care of these great daily wear contacts. The eyecare professional was so very encouraging throughout the appointment, and she worked carefully with us to be sure Kristen was comfortable with the process and care regime. Kristen persevered through the whole "touching your eyes" barrier and gained confidence in the process!

Click on this link to the Soflens daily disposables site to learn more: http://bit.ly/nwJpLU


She has been practicing the insertion and removal and how important sterile conditions and care are to maintaining healthy eyesight. Kristen looks and feels great - building her self-esteem and confidence. Her friends have commented on how beautiful her eyes are without the distraction of her regular glasses. She has found the entire experience very positive and affirming as she journeys through these tumultuous teen years.

The experience has further cemented our relationship far beyond the issue of eye wear. We have instituted a "Daily Talk” with your teen – which helps us maneuver the "warzone" of parent-teen communication mine field and broach more difficult subjects. Today's youth carry a heavy load that we adults need to support as they journey towards adulthood. MomCentral Consulting and Bausch + Lomb provides added insight at http://www.bausch.com/en/Our-Company/Recent-News/2011-Archive/Big-Talk

I wrote this review while participating in a Test Drive by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Bausch + Lomb and received Soflens daily disposables to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Freshen Up with Unilever/Dove: Don't Fret the Sweat!

Summer is upon us, and OMG it's HOT!!! The kids are outside running around and working up a sweat - that's great for them physically, but not so fresh for everyone within range afterwards!

My daughter and I have shared our freshening philosophy together, and she's "takin' it to the streets" with her friends...it's time to invest in some deodorants...NOW!! She's at the perfect age to instill good grooming and hygiene habits, including the use of shower gel, powder, anti-perspirant deodorant and body mists. I'm not bashful to tell our kids (and occasionally my hubs...) that they're stinky, and better do something about it NOW! Dove Ultimate Go Fresh line is perfect for us - fresh, clean and light! She loves the new "Revive" scent duo of Anti-perspirant Deodorant and Body Mist with a hint of moisturizer. It's a pomegranate and lemon verbena scent, crisp and inspired by nature - it smells heavenly!!!! The Unilever Dove family of products is a brand I trust for my family.

Recently, Unilever released the Tween Confidence Index, which suggests that tween confidence is short-lived but can be safe-guarded by maintaining strong communication between tweens and parents. With this and more resources available at DontFretTheSweat.com, Unilever hopes to show parents that they can talk to their tweens about how the right deodorant can keep them free from odor, embarrassment and discomfort along the way.


Be sure to visit their site to learn more at:

DontFretTheSweat.com


I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Unilever and received the items necessary to facilitate my review. In addition, Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Yoursphere: Safe Social Networking for Our Tweens/Teens

Our family loves our on-line technology and vibing on the social networking scene. The kids want to explore, but we're hesitate to let them roam freely without supervision. We are now registered at Yoursphere.com a great social networking site for families. Registration is free - what r u waiting 4??? LOL

Visit their site and explore all the great "spheres" on topics that are totally relevant to our kids' interests including video, games, fashion, animals, music, and more!

www.Yoursphere.com

If you choose to register for your free account, be sure to use our refrral code: YSMC-0063

We look forward to connecting with you on Yoursphere.com

I wrote this review while participating in the Yoursphere Test Drive program by Mom Central on behalf of Yoursphere. I received a free lifetime Gold membership on Yoursphere.com, Yoursphere t-shirts, and a $50 American Express gift card to facilitate my review.

I Don't Want To Miss....PSA Contest for Teens

No teen wants to miss out on all of the fun - from a friend's Sweet 16 party to a big home football game - because of being sick at home with the flu. That's why singer/songwriter and former American Idol finalist Brooke White has teamed up with infectious disease specialist and author of Germ Proof Your Kids, Dr. Harley Rotbart, and The Clorox Company to launch I Don't Want to Miss..., a national contest that puts teens in the spotlight to talk about flu education and prevention.

The heart of the program is a PSA contest in which teens can submit a short 45-60 second video entry to IDontWantToMiss.com, sharing what they most don't want to miss out on and why that makes flu prevention important. What a fun, creative challenge for our teens and their friends!

For the first time this year, the CDC expanded flu vaccination guidelines to include all children six months through 18 years old. However, a new national survey shows that only 16% of parents with teens are aware of this new recommendation.

The winning contestant will win an acoustic concert from former American Idol finalist Brooke White at his/her school! The second place winner will receive a guitar autographed by Brooke White herself, and three runners-up will win autographed photos.

I'm encouraging my teen son, Cameron, to enter - go ahead and submit your family's entry today! Deadline to enter is March 11th!

NSTeens and NetSmartz

Technology is so fast-paced and critical in today's society - my kids have far outpaced my interest and ability, and they're tweens and teens! I worry about their youthful trust being broken in the Cyber word - especially Cyberbullying....

I have sat them down online to check out NSTeens and NetSmartz, a leading online resource of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, for Internet use:
www.nsteens.org

This great site offers something for everyone concerned about children's online experiences. Videos, comics, and interactive experiences provide kids with critical information. There's even a Spanish site! Parents, teens, children and educators can learn together about this extremely relevant topic.

Be sure to talk openly with your children including the following provided on the site:

Stuff to Know

• Stay in control of your online reputation!
• Don’t post information, photos, or videos you might regret later.
• Think about your online image (Who will see this? What will they think?).
• Use privacy settings to limit access to your page; don’t let anyone – not predators or cyberbullies - gain access to information that’s yours.
• Remember that online choices have offline consequences and in some cases, legal implications.
• Consider how fast information and images get forwarded to people beyond your group of friends via texting, IM, and e-mail – especially sexually explicit ones