Tips On Choosing Appropriate Video And Phone Games For Your Kids

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There is no denying that we live in a day and age whereby gaming has taken over. Most boys love nothing more than playing on their PlayStation when they get in from school, and girls are getting in on the action too, of course, especially thanks to the abundance of apps that are now available. Managing what your children can play is not easy, but here are some tips to help you choose appropriate video and phone games for your kids.

Play the game with your child – Of course, the easiest way to make sure a game is appropriate is to pay it with your child. This is the only way to get a full understanding regarding what the game is about. If you are unsure regarding any type of game, make sure you try it out with your kid first.

Check the rating – Most games today will come with a rating. This is especially the case for PlayStation and Xbox games, and mobile apps can also come with warnings. Make sure you check this rating out beforehand.

Try to remember that the games have been rated in such a way for a reason, even if you don’t understand what it is as you have never played it. While kids may want to play games that have older ratings than their age, it’s not a good idea for let them. For example, you wouldn’t give a blackout bingo promo code to someone under the age of 18 because it’s illegal, and the same goes for video games.

Read reviews – In addition to this, you should take the time to read reviews that have been left by other parents. Thanks to the Internet, we can research any type of product or service with speed and ease, and this is something you should certainly do when you are looking for a game for your child. If the game is inappropriate, you can rest assured that there will be plenty of comments that have been left by other parents warning you not to make the same mistake that they made.

Put a password on the app store – To make sure that children do not purchase games on your phone without permission, a password is a must.

Choose genres with care – If you do not have the time to play a game yourself, and your child has been requesting that they download a new app or game on the computer, the best thing to do is stick with a safe genre. For example, you could allow them to download bike games or cooking games. This will give you peace of mind that they have not chosen anything containing adult content.

Limit game time – Last but not least, no matter what game you choose in the end, it is important to limit game time. The last thing you want is for your child to develop a gaming addiction. A healthy balance is important.

So there you have it: some useful tips that should help you to choose video and mobile phone games that are suitable for your children. While there is no denying that this can be difficult, if you follow the advice that has been presented above, you should you have the perfect recipe for separating the good apps and games from the bad.

This post is a collaborative effort by St. Louis Dad.

Hours Of Fun! Smart Ways Dads Can Keep Themselves Entertained With A Phone

If you’re a dad, you probably know all too well that parenting can involve a lot of waiting around. Whether you’re ferrying the kids from one friend’s house to another or you’re waiting on them to finish after-school clubs or soccer practice, it pays to have a few fallback options to keep yourself entertained. Thanks to smartphones, you can now access all kinds of entertainment options at the touch of a button. If you often find yourself looking for ways to kill time, here are some of the best ways to take full advantage of your time off and your phone’s capabilities.

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Online gaming

You may not consider yourself a gamer, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t delve into the world of online gaming while you’ve got an hour to while away. There’s a vast array of online games available, and you can choose options and titles that appeal to your interests. You can see what all the fuss is about and discover the games your kids are raving about, or you can indulge a passion for sport, music, history or science fiction. Many games are free to play, you don’t have to have an account to join in, and you can pick up and drop games as you please. For example, you can download Blackout Bingo on iOS and Android to enjoy the social aspect of Bingo games. Blackout Bingo’s games take about two minutes to play, so you can play whenever you have some free time. The game allows you to brush up on your Bingo skills in elementary one card play, after which you can win some real-world rewards and cash prizes where available. Also, you can use the Blackout Bingo promo code LW3HE to get up to $50 in bonuses based on how much you deposit for Skillz games. You can challenge other people, or you can find information about getting involved in live markets, for example, if you enjoy football or racing. Gaming is a fun, accessible, affordable way of filling your time, and it can also enable you to meet new people and gain a better understanding of what your children do in their spare time if they enjoy gaming at home.

Reading and researching

If you’ve got a phone and you’ve got Internet access, you can host a giant pool of informative, insightful resources. Whether you’re keen to keep abreast of current affairs or you’re researching for a new blog post, a journal or work-related tasks, your phone is a portal to all the information you could possibly need. You can access news sites, download apps for your favorite sites or newspapers for easy access and find academic sources. There is a huge amount of information available online, and not all of it is accurate, so bear this in mind when you’re trawling through search engine results. Stick to reputable, respected sites.

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Socializing

Has it been an age since you caught up with old school or college friends? Is a message to your sister or grandmother long overdue? If you’ve got a phone to hand, take advantage of the time you have and be social. Check out the latest news on social media, start a new group chat with your old classmates and get in touch with family members you haven’t seen in a while. It’s never been easier to stay connected. Social platforms, email and video calls enable you to contact others for free, no matter where you are in the world.

If you’re a dad who regularly finds themselves with half an hour to kill while you’re waiting for your children, your phone can keep you entertained in numerous ways. Indulge your interests, get up to speed with what’s going on in the world, play fun games and be sociable.

This post is a collaborative effort by St. Louis Dad.

The St. Louis Gateway Arch is #YourArch This Summer

The St. Louis Gateway Arch Park Foundation invited my family and I down to get an exclusive tour of the new St. Louis Arch Museum before it opens to the public on July 3rd this summer. Getting a sneak peek of the new museum was something that I could not say no to, so I agreed and patiently waited for the details to arrive.

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Once the details were sent we began scheduling and planning our day. First up was some yoga down at Kiener Plaza for #KienerKids! Several kids and adults participated in an early morning yoga session in beautiful downtown St. Louis. With a fantastic view of the Gateway Arch and some yoga getting us ready and focused for the day ahead of us we were ready for our tour. But first we finished up the awesome #KienerKids activities. A long with yoga, there were a few games, the Kiener Plaza playground, and an awesome story teller that was just fantastic at keeping the kids attention with his stories and songs.

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After story time we took a quick restroom break and took a quick walk from Kiener Plaza to the entrance of the museum. A quick introduction from our tour guide and we were in! A really cool feature to the new museum that we did not try out because, well, we didn’t bring extra clothes and we didn’t think it was “open” yet was this little pond like feature right in front of the museum doors. It isn’t a fountain so much as it’s a water feature that kids can play in and view the amazing light reflections that you will see at various times of the day. It was very interesting to hear about and I cannot wait to see it in action.

Upon entering the museum you are immediately able to see it’s open design. There’s so much space AND light!!! Before when entering the museum you felt as though you were entering a bunker and the sunshine stays behind and never entered, that is no longer the case. The new layout and construction now allows for natural light to spread all through-out the museum, removing that claustrophobic feel that was once there. Check out St. Louis Dad on Instagram or search #YourArch to see more photos!

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Wide open spaces, class rooms, and more, the new St. Louis Gateway Arch Museum is worth visiting again and again. There are many great photo opportunities within the museum as well as from the top of the arch.

The St. Louis Gateway Arch Park Foundation has done a terrific job with everything! The path you take to get to the Arch from Kiener is as simple as a walk in the park, no longer are you needing to cross an interstate to get from one spot to the next! The displays within the museum are all up to date and incredible. Kids and adults will have a blast learning about St. Louis, Missouri, and the rest of the mid-west while exploring the numerous interactive features and displays.

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When you’re done learning and playing with all of those awesome features you can easily grab some tickets to the top of the arch and get that 653 feet view of St. Louis. It is breathtaking looking out over the city, or even spinning around and looking across the river and at all of the action happening everywhere. Maybe you can even see my house!

Our experience of the sneak peek tour was worth every second of time spent at the arch. The kids are already asking to go back, especially my little monument fan. She is so fascinated by our nations monuments that she wants to see them all! We can at least cross the Gateway Arch off of her list. She loved it and so did the other kids. I have a feeling my blogger buddies over at AndHattieMakesThree.com, SippyCupMom.com, and STLMotherhood.com all had a great time as well!

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We always have a blast downtown. From Cardinal games to trips to Kiener Plaza and the various parks all around the city. We even got lucky and were able to stop the ice cream man on our way back to our car. The kids devoured popsicles in the likenesses of their favorite cartoons. That left us with just a few more awesome picture opportunities that we totally took advantage of. So not only does St. Louis have some great parks, great museums, we also have some amazing photo spots all over the city. So come on down and check it all out!

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Last but not least, St. Louis Dad and the St. Louis Gateway Arch Park Foundation wants your help!

The Gateway Arch Park Foundation invites the public to participate in the #YourArch campaign, a one-of-a-kind collaborative photo montage to celebrate the grand opening of the Museum at the Gateway Arch and new West Entrance on July 3. Images will be sourced through social media, Instagram and Twitter, using the hashtag #YourArch. Photos can also be uploaded through the campaign’s website, www.YourArch.org.

The crowd-sourced and Arch-inspired masterpiece will be unveiled at the Museum at the Gateway Arch grand opening celebration on July 3. The #YourArch photo call is open to lovers of Gateway Arch National Park near and far, and can include both newly-snapped selfies and vintage throwbacks of people with the Arch and the surrounding Gateway Arch Park. A new #YourArch inspired video launches May 4 as part of the campaign, and captures the connection visitors and St. Louisans have with the monument.

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“The Arch is part of so many shared memories – grade school field trips, an iconic backdrop for stunning wedding photos and those first futuristic tram rides to the top revealing a spectacular view of St. Louis,” says Eric Moraczewski, executive director of the Gateway Arch Park Foundation. “We see millions of visitors, from St. Louis and around the world, taking their photos with the Arch. The #YourArch campaign celebrates that shared pride and awe of the monument and reminds us that the Arch belongs to everyone.”

To enter photos, use #YourArch on Instagram or Twitter (profiles must be public), or visit www.YourArch.org to upload them directly to the campaign. For more information, visit archmosaic.yourarch.org.

About Gateway Arch Park Foundation: The Gateway Arch Park Foundation is a non-profit organization with a mission to ensure that the Gateway Arch, its grounds, neighboring public space, and attractions are a vital, active, welcoming, well-supported resource to the community and nation for generations to come. The Foundation is part of an alliance that helps meet this mission, which includes the National Park Service, Bi-State Development, Great Rivers Greenway, Jefferson National Parks Association and the City of St. Louis. For more information, visit www.ArchPark.org.

How to Successfully Childproof Your Home & Possessions

Have you childproofed your home yet? If not, it’s time for you to change that by taking action. It’s a lot easier to do than you might think, and it’ll certainly save you a lot of time, energy and hassle later on. There are so many things that can get broken or damaged in your home if you’re not careful to protect them. You’ll only end up cursing your stupidity for not taking action sooner if something was to get broken later on.

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As well as that, it’s equally as important to be thinking about the safety and wellbeing of your children in your home. Don’t forget that the home can be a very dangerous place for a small child, so their safety is not something that should ever be taken for granted. If you make that mistake, you’ll only end up regretting it massively later. Read on to learn about how you can get all this right for your family inside your home.

 

Don’t Leave Junk for the Bin Lying Around in the House for Too Long

 

Kids will start playing with and climbing on pretty much anything you leave lying around in the home. That’s why you need to be careful with what you leave lying about if it’s potentially dangerous for them. Rather than leaving things by the door for you to take out to the bin later, you should focus on getting them out into the bin right away. You certainly don’t want your young children to hurt themselves out of playful curiosity. It’s up to you to make sure nothing like that ever happens.

Invest in Some Plug Protectors to Avoid Major Problems

Plug sockets are often found at eye level for children sitting and playing on the floor. This means they’re always going to be attracted to them, and you have to mitigate that danger as best you can. If you don’t, you will put your child at risk. If they were to take something metal and push it in there, they would potentially kill themselves as a result, so this is not something to be taken lightly at all. You can easily buy plug protectors that cover the socket and stop kids playing with them.

Insure Your Electronics and Other Valuables

Taking out a big insurance policy for all the things that you own is definitely a good idea. Like it or not, your electronics and other most valuable items are more likely to get damaged and broken if your kids are using them. By having the security that comes with a good insurance policy, you’ll be able to achieve real peace of mind. Browse the options and find the policy that’s the right fit for you. That financial backup is priceless for most people, so don’t underestimate what the right insurance policy could do for you.

Get Into the Habit of Using Cases and Screen Protectors

Lots of people don’t really like putting screen protectors on things like phones, tablets and other gadgets with screens. But it’s something that you won’t regret once you have your children grabbing hold of them and dropping them on the floor all the time. The same applies to cases. A simple phone case from somewhere like Custom Envy will protect it more and make it look nice. These things are worth considering unless you want that expensive Samsung Galaxy to get smashed up.

Don’t Risk Valuable Breakables by Displaying Them in the Open

If you do have a precious vase that dates back hundreds of years and is worth more than the house itself, why take risks with it? Putting breakable things like that on display in your home is asking for trouble when you’ve got children growing up and rushing around the place non-stop. Put them in storage or sell those things if you prefer. Whatever you choose to do, don’t put them at risk by leaving them on display where they could get damaged.

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Don’t Underestimate Their Destructive Potential

Sure, your child might look like nothing but sweetness and light. However, you shouldn’t let that fool you because when they’ve decided that they’re going to smash and throw something until it breaks, it’s almost certainly going to break. The destructive potential of your little angel should never be underestimated! It’s certainly worth taking the right precautions so that you don’t end up with regrets later on. And don’t let their sweet cherubic faces fool you.

Keep Some Stuff in a Locked Room if You Have a Spare Room in Your Home

If you’re lucky enough to have a spare room in touto family home, you should definitely try to make use of it. That space should never go to waste when you have the chance to make better use of it. By adding a simple lock to the door, you can make sure that your most valuable and treasured things aren’t taken and damaged by toe meddling kids. It’s a great way to keep things safe and completely remove the possibility of something going wrong.

Use Childproof Gates for Safety

Stairs are obviously very dangerous for small children who are not yet able to walk independently. You should make sure that you have gates that shut off access to stairs so that your child can play safely without you having to worry about them crawling over to the edge of the stairs. They’re very adaptable and easy to install these days, so they can be used in your home in all kinds of ways in order to keep your child safe.

Nothing is safe in your home if it’s not protected from your children. And the safety of your children themselves has to be your number one priority too. All of those issues are addressed here, so make sure you start to implement some of the things that have been covered. Doing so will help you to childproof your home properly.

This post is a collaborative effort by St. Louis Dad.