Enter Gentle Dental in Wakefield, MA http://www.gentledental.com/ has great staff, open evenings until 7 pm, and has really nice Dentists.  Yes, and they do take children as young as 5 (I asked).  They take insurance, and they will accept you even if you don’t have Dental Insurance (you do have to pay full amount at time of appointment).

Get this, if you refer someone else (including your husband/friends/in laws/kids) you get $25.00 off your next appointment!  Not bad if you ask me!

Tell them Gia Saulnier sent you!

We celebrate with a menorah and candles, latkes (if you want the recipe, just let me know) and dreidles.  We celebrate with a Christmas(kah) tree and I even found a Jewish star of David for an ornament.  An old friend of mine gave me a Jewish Santa!

However you and your family celebrate the Holiday, we here at North Shore Parenting want to wish you a happy and healthy new year and Holidays -whatever you celebrate.

Oh yes, and a plug (of course)….ahem….my husband and I will be performing for Rockport First Night New Year’s Eve from 6 pm to 8 pm and the website for more information is http://www.newyearsrockporteve.com which is a great family event!  We will most likely bring our 5 year old to help out and perform with us!  (Don’t worry, we’ll bundle him up!)

So from me to you and your family - Happy Christmas, Merry Hanukkah, Hope you have a nice Kwanza and Blessed Be for the Winter Solstice.

Are you or your family thinking about selling your home? How about buying your first home?

But there is more than that, you can actually go on real train rides (and not just the MBTA, although that is probably the cheapest option).  In fact, my father in law just learned about The Polar Express train http://www.wakefieldmusicboosters.com/polar-express-2009.html which will run from Anderson Woburn station to the North Pole for December 13th!  I love this because not only will my son love (and I mean L.O.V.E.) the train ride, he will also get to enjoy the story of The Polar Express® (from the movie and book) and we will get to see the smile on his face.

There is also the Train show at The Wilmington Shriners’ coming up too, http://www.trainshow.org/showinfo/200911WIL.htm on November 22nd. This is a lot of model trains that are put together and they do have a BIG section for just Lego land (my personal favorite) where they put a lot of legos together to make it one big scene with trains and buildings and people and and and…I digress…it’s all for the Shriners, so I like that too.

Of course there is the Hobo Railroad http://www.hoborr.com/ that you can go on, but that is in NH, and I think that there is a real Polar Express train ride too in NH, but I believe that there is a waiting list to get on (and it would take a year to get on it…)

That’s all the trains I can take…Have fun with your kids and take a train ride to remember.

Cornerstone Bookstore in Salem, MA presents a fun evening of a cappella singing with two of the area’s premier ensembles: None of the Above and Fretless. There will be something for every musical taste from classical to pop to jazz. And best of all, it’s free! Details: September 19, 2009 7:00pm — Cornerstone Bookstore 45 Lafayette St Salem, MA.

Links:

• None of the Above
• Fretless
• Cornerstone Books

Are you and your kids ready?  If this is their first year of Preschool or Kindergarten, check with your local schools if your children will need a backpack!  Yes, even in PreSchool, children are required to have a backpack, and sometimes a lunch too, depending on how your local school does it.

If your child needs a backpack and you haven’t gotten one yet, you can probably get one at Walmart® http://www.walmart.com or Target® http://www.target.com or even L.L.Bean® http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/LLBSearchDispatch?storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1&init=0&freeText=school (but I think that’s a little extravagant, but hey, why not if you can afford it!)

You can become more involved in your children’s schooling by becoming part of the P.T.A. (Parent’s Teacher Association) or just helping by donating Clorox Wipes and other things that the class might need.  (Do check with your kid’s teachers first though!).

I think most teachers will appreciate the extra attention that you give your child(ren) at home, whether it’s their first day or not.  Even in High School (mine is not at that age yet, but I know it’s eventually coming) they need certain things, like having access to a computer…yeah, scary isn’t it?!?…

Yes, you should be concerned with their safety, but know that school is a great place for your kids to learn. 

Good luck to all your kids going to school this season, and your best to stay involved.

P.S. I do know that some kids are home schooled as well, but I don’t really have too much information on that.

However, sometimes, no matter how hard you try, things don’t always go your way.

This is where Early Intervention can help you and your child.

Early Intervention is a place that is run by the State of Massachusetts and will help your child who is not developing normally (or if you think is not developing normally, do get an evaluation) to learn in different ways.

The place I have personal experience with is in Stoneham, MA and they were fabulous with my son (now age 5) who is on the mild autism spectrum with PPD.

It is difficult to hear from someone you don’t know that well to let you know that your child has autism or has issues.  But, sometimes these issues can be obvious to someone else even though you are with your child more than 80% of the time (for those of us working full time, it seems less than that).

A lot of parents that have twins tell me that they also have been part (or were part of) Early Intervention as well.  My suggestion is to do this earlier than later, as the latest age they will take a child is age 2.9 years of age.  As soon as that child reaches 3 years old, they are too “old” to be in Early Intervention.  Of course, this means that you should talk with your pediatrician about it, discuss it with them in full, and do your homework.

There is a lot more that can help these special children out and I feel good about promoting them since they really helped my son out for the better.

1) Pignones - Stoneham, MA: takes credit cards, friendly, good service, and Crepes Foster.  Get there early, limited seating…need I say more?

2) The Country Chef - Wilmington, MA: takes credit cards, family friendly, great service, good eggs, and all around good time.  Good parking, sometimes a wait, but worth it.

3) The Real McCoy - Middleton, MA: nice, airy, open, good breakfast, has healthy choices, pretty good parking, takes card

4) The Dream Diner - Tyngsboro, MA http://www.dreamdiner.com/ Cash ONLY, this is by far my favorite place to go, 50’s type feel, great food, there is a wait, but totally worth it…go early, that’s your best bet.

5) Bagel World - Peabody, MA and Reading, MA great for bagels and coffee (for you) , there is a sit down, but better going through the drive through

6) Beyond Bagels - North Reading, MA - Cash ONLY - good place also for fresh bagels, nice people and there is better parking and sit down place.

7) Parker’s Maple Barn - Mason, NH (okay, this is a ride) http://www.parkersmaplebarn.com/ but the ride is really pretty, and they do take card.  My suggestion - go hungry, ’cause their portions are HUGE!  They also have a website where you can purchase real home made maple syrup!  Yum!  They also have a gift shop…a little shopping, a big breakfast…how can you not go wrong here…beautiful scenery too.