Blog Posts by Kaboodle.com

Healthy eating habits start early

Studies show that children's lifetime habits form long before adulthood, with many of their routines and perspectives on how to navigate the world formed as early as five years old. This means that what you allow your child to put in his or her mouth today can greatly influence the eating choices he or she will make decades later. With optimal life-long health in mind, following are nine tips for teaching your child to eat well.

1. Set a good example.
The notion of practicing what you preach was never more important than with eating habits. If you binge diet, live on fast food, skip meals, or regularly down sodas and juice in front of your child, you're teaching her bad habits-even if you keep her on a healthier diet.

2. Cook with your child.
Part of being a healthful adult is knowing how to feed yourself healthy foods, meaning whole foods and fresh, quality ingredients combined and cooked for solid nutrition. If your child doesn't learn how to cook at home,

It's easy to elevate your next picnic or barbecue

Outdoor entertaining season is here again, and with it comes the opportunity to invest in the following fashionable and functional pieces that will make your next alfresco party easier and more elegant than ever!

MORE FROM KABOODLE:
The Best Hairstyles with Bangs

The Wildest and Coolest Nail Polish Designs

The Only 10 Accessories You Need This Spring

Your Chance to Win $100 Steve Madden Gift Certificate

Personalized Mom's Day Gifts That'll Make Her Melt

16-month-old with pedicure

Recently, when one of our editors took her six year old daughter and a friend for a manicure and pedicure at a local salon she overheard another patron whisper disapprovingly to a friend, "I didn't let my daughter use nail polish until she was in junior high!" Unlike the case with makeup, it had never occurred to this mom that a nail salon excursion could be considered age-inappropriate to some parents.

That got us wondering: Would or did you wait to let your daughter use nail polish or go to a salon or do you think it's fine to indulge her the minute she can express her desire for it?

MORE FROM KABOODLE:
The Best Hairstyles with Bangs
The Hottest Nail Polishes of the Season
The Only 10 Accessories You Need This Spring
Your Chance to Win $100 Steve Madden Gift Certificate
Personalized Mom's Day Gifts That'll Make Her Melt

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How much would you spend?

We all want the best for our children, but exactly how much are we willing to spend to pamper our little loved ones? If the following products are any indication, the sky's the limit.

More from Kaboodle:
The Best Hairstyles with Bangs
The Cutest Spring Dresses Ever
The Most Comfortable (and Fashionable) Flats
Wackiest Beauty Products Ever
All our picks for the most absurdly fancy baby gear!

Some of the best apps are free

Along with the pay-to-use iPhone apps are a lot of spectacularly useful and completely free apps, including the following 10 finds, which now we can't live without.

1. AppsGoneFree
Every day hundreds of apps reduce their price to free for a limited time to try to stimulate excitement. AppsGoneFree evaluates the offerings, handpicks the best choices, and sends you the details, a synopsis of the app, and downloading access.

2. Waze
This free traffic and navigation app not only tells you the best way to drive from one place to another, but also tells you where to go so you don't have to read directions while driving! Also, since it's social, it allows community members to identify and share traffic information, including where to expect highway patrol may be fishing for speeders, accidents, speed cams, and more.

3. My Fitness Pal
Your personal calorie counter, My Fitness Pal lets you set a daily calorie goal, then record your daily

To be on-trend this spring without breaking the bank, all you have to do is invest in a few essential accessories. Mix and match the following items with your favorite dresses, T-shirts, jeans, and shorts and you'll feel stylish and financially savvy!


Sandals
A natural compliment to your spring wardrobe
Sandals turn even everyday jeans into springtime attire. And a neutral tone like this one featured in these Steve Madden SURRGE sandals ($39.95) pairs beautifully with everything from a white T-shirt to a floral dress! Available in snakeskin, teal, and neutral



Neon Purse
Color yourself trendy!
Lively neon is again on trend this spring, and this perky purse from Target ($29.95) will make any outfit pop. And it's not too over the top!



Snakeskin Platform Pump
A new take on a classic
An on-trend update on the classic heel, these snakeskin pumps look great with everything from jeans to dresses, and the $49.95 price can't be beat!



Sunglasses
Inexpensive and stylish

A new pair of sunnies, such as these by Steve Madden, can instantly update an outfit. And tortoise-shell styles are extremely versatile.

Mother's Day is on May 13, which means if you want to get her something special and personalized (that takes more lead-time than off-the-shelf gifts), now's the time to do it! Lucky for you, we've found myriad custom keepsakes that will wow her from years to come, including the following fabulous items.

Fingerprint Necklace

Mom and child prints

A mother and child bond is as unique as a fingerprint, so why not memorialize that sentiment with this artful charm stamped with your own print?! Contact designer for instructions regarding fingerprints submission. $195 at Etsy

Handprint Canvas Kit

An awesome gift, hands down!

Commission a toddler masterpiece or celebrate art night with the whole family. Four colorful canvases await handprints, footprints and parent-child collaborations. $39.95 at Red Envelope

Family Traditions Journal

Your family's traditions memorialized

Meant to be filled, shared and revisited by all members of your family for years to come, this keepsake journal is a fun, collaborative and personalized way to recount all your family traditions.

Everyday bliss can be yours

If you're someone who has succumbed to the pressures of life and find yourself joylessly slogging through the daily grind, take heart! Following are nine extremely simple-and completely free-things you can do to change your attitude and experience more pleasure every single day-starting right now! Try the following tips and see if they help add some spring in your faltering step.

1. Say "Hello."
Sometimes all it takes to lift the spirits is a little acknowledgement. So give some to get some! Say "Good morning" or "Hello" to a friendly looking strangers as you pass them and get greetings in return for an instant pick-me-up.

2. Do one simple random act of kindness each day.
Like volunteer work, doing something for someone else can make you feel better about yourself. But if you don't have time to participate in a local volunteer program, try the instant gratification of holding the door for several people at a public place, helping someone in need