My little girl is just like her dad – she loves technology. At six-years-old she can whip through apps much faster than I can. As much as she loves art projects, playing outside, and dressing up as a princess, some days she can’t wait to get on the computer and play. As a mom, I want her computer time to be simultaneously fun and educational.

That’s why I was so excited to try out PowerMyLearning. PowerMyLearning is a free, web-based K-12 learning platform. It has taken thousands of free learning activities from across the web and placed them in one easy to navigate site. The site is sub-divided by grade and by major subjects including:

Math
Language Arts
Science
Social Studies
Art & Music
Technology
World Languages
Your Life

I created an account for myself and my daughter – they are linked so I can track what activities she completes. The cool part is that the account can be linked up to her school class as well. I am looking forward to talking to her teacher to see if they use PowerMyLearning.

Lily and I selected first grade activities and she was thrilled to see some of her favorite games pop up like Curious George from PBS Kids and Who am I from Starfall. I love that PowerMyLearning has done the work for me and has put many of our favorite sites in one place. It is uber convenient that my daughter does not have to type in web addresses when she wants to move from sites like PBS Kids to Starfall. One mistyped word and she could end up on a site inappropriate for her or simply be frustrated because she can’t get to where she wants. With PowerMyLearning it was easy to click in and out of games.

The organization of the site is superb. It took me seconds to locate a first grade level geography game to compliment what she learned at school this week. PowerMyLearning has basically just simplified many of the online learning activities we were already participating in. There is enough high quality content that I don’t have to worry about googling sites to meet more of my daughter’s educational needs.

Lily gave the site two thumbs up. She spent a half hour on the site the first day and begged for more. She even told me that a math game was fun – that’s a big win for this mom!

I am excited to use this program on those days that my daughter asks to “play on the computer.” Now she can play away and I can have the peace of mind that she is participating in age-appropriate educational activities!

Do yourself a favor and check out PowerMyLearning for your school-age child. You can also find them on the following social media sites:

Facebook PowerMyLearning

Twitter @PowerMyLearning

Pinterest PowerMyLearning

This is a sponsored post. While I received compensation, all opinions are my own (and Lily’s!) I only write about products that my family personally uses and loves! 

What are your favorite online educational sites? 

The post Power My Learning appeared first on KeepMovingForwardWithMe.

Cascade Springs

I am so excited to be participating in Girl Love Glam’s Summer Fun Series! Be sure to check out all the fun projects and activities at the end of this post!

Hiking is one of our little family’s favorite activities. With three children under the age of five, my husband and I have learned some tips and tricks to make hiking with toddlers and babies fun for everyone.

1. Practice Makes Perfect. 

Before our first hike of the season, we take our little ones out in the backyard or on a walk around the neighborhood for a practice hike. We emphasize the 3 W’s – watch, walk, and wait.

Watch where you are going.

Walk, don’t run.

Wait for family.

I love to give my children the opportunity to run wild in nature, but not on uneven mountain trails! Practicing these three things on walks at home makes the actual hike much easier. We turn the 3 W’s into an easy mantra – watch, walk, wait – so that our children know exactly what to do with just three simple words.

2. Dress for Success

Dress your children assuming that they are going to be dipping their toes in the stream and sitting in the dust/mud to examine insects. Much less stress for everyone when mama doesn’t have to worry about clothes getting stained or good shoes being ruined!

3. Well-equipped with Water

Little bodies get thirsty fast, especially in the sun. We love our Ledge Hydration Pack. Since it is a backpack, it is hands-free and simple enough for all of us to use. As our children get older, we plan to get them their own.

4. Sneak a Snack

A quick snack goes a long way on the trail. My kiddos love GoGo Squeez Applesauce and they are perfect for on the go. Be sure to pack all your litter back out.

5. Stop for Service

Last year we participated in the Governor’s Summer of Service – got to start them young, right? One of the easiest ways for our five-year-old daughter to serve was to pick up litter on the trails. We looped the handle of a plastic grocery bag through my daughter’s belt loop and bought her child-sized gardening gloves to use to pick up the garbage. Lily loved it and thought it was as fun as a treasure hunt. As an added bonus, she and her little brother were much less likely to litter on the trails.

6. It’s a Wrap

When hiking with the under two-years-old crowd, a good wrap or hiking backpack comes in handy. I love my Moby Wrap for my babies who are still little bobble heads. With my young baby contentedly snuggled to my chest, my hands are free to help my older children. As my babies get older, we transition them to a hiking backpack that my husband typically carries. Our Sherpani hiking carrier has great storage and a sunshade for the babe – we love it! The biggest advantage of the Moby Wrap, hydration pack, and hiking carrier is that they are all hands-free making it much easier to hold other little hands on the trail when they need help.

I hope these tips have been helpful! See you on the trails this summer! Some of our favorite trails to do as a family include:

Idaho

Mesa Falls & Harriman State Park

Utah

Grotto Trail by Nebo Scenic Loop

Bridal Veil Falls and the Provo River Trail

Battle Creek Falls in Pleasant Grove

Bonneville Shoreline Trail

Cascade Springs on the Alpine Loop

This post includes Amazon.com affiliate links.

What are your favorite hikes with your kids?

The post Tips for Hiking with Children appeared first on KeepMovingForwardWithMe.

This week we took our Summer of Service on the road to Idaho.  Our little family was heading up north for a college reunion at BYU-Idaho so we decided to sneak in a hike or two in the beautiful Idaho outdoors.

I lived in Idaho for four years and somehow never found time to visit Mesa Falls so that was our very first stop.We walked both the lower and upper falls trails. Loved that the trails were so family friendly.

 

The lower falls had a few smaller trails that we explored. Lily has developed quite the trained eye for litter now and we were able to leave the trail looking a little bit better. Even after the Summer of Service is over, I’m pretty sure we will keep up this tradition. Lily and Cort are both so careful not to leave litter since we have begun cleaning the trails.

 

 

The post Service on Vacation appeared first on KeepMovingForwardWithMe.

George Bernard Shaw

The post Serving with small children appeared first on KeepMovingForwardWithMe.

1. Beautifying parks and trails by picking up litter
2. Making bracelets for orphans in third world countries
3. Making bookmarks and stationary for the Juvenile Justice Center
4. Collecting cans for Habitat for Humanity
5. Making and delivering food for the sick in our church community
6. Visiting the elderly
7. Putting together care packages for the troops
8. Tying fleece blankets
9. Making cloth diapers for preemies
10. Sending new stuffed animals overseas for the troops to give to children

The post Summer of Service appeared first on KeepMovingForwardWithMe.