Jake at Time after Time has a Sunday Post Challenge and every week he provides a theme…this week’s theme is VILLAGE.

According to the dictionary, a village is a clustered human settlement or community.  The small photo above shows some of the buildings on Star Island, part of the Isles of Shoals off the coast of Maine.  During the summer, weekly Christian conferences are held, and the island is filled with people seeking a respite from the hectic pace of city life.  During their time there, children become part of the wider community.  The saying, it takes a village to raise a child, originally an African proverb…Ora na azu nwa…and later the title of a book by Hillary Rodham Clinton, becomes a reality.

Although it certainly does help to have the assistance of others, the primary responsibility for raising a child falls to the parents.  Food, shelter, love, early education, rules, discipline, values…these are the basics that every parent is expected to provide. 

One of the most important things a parent needs to insure is that the child is living in a safe environment.  Summer is here and the temperature rises.  But before you open those windows, please check these window safety tips.   Did you know that over 4000 children are injured and wind up in the emergency room every year and about a dozen die from window falls?

According to Pediatrics.about.com, to keep your children safe, in addition to close supervision, you should also:

• not allow your children to play around windows, even if they are closed, since they can be hurt if they fall through the glass of a closed window
• not rely on screens to keep your kids from falling
• consider installing landscaping under windows that might cushion a fall
• install windows that can open from the top, instead of the bottom, if possible
• keep furniture away from windows, so that your children aren’t tempted to climb on them
• teach your children about window
• planning safety

Keeping young kids happy, engaged and busy during the summer months can be a challenge.  Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking is a one-stop guide and activity book.  Using it this summer will help prepare the younger ones for preschool and kindergarten…six and seven year olds will love the craft projects and cooking activities and may be able to read some of the stories themselves…this will help to prevent the academic slide that often occurs during the summer months.  Grab a copy at only $19.95 (over 50% off the cover price) for yourself, a family member, neighbor or church summer school.  Lined sections on every other page provide a place for notes or comments…the book can become a journal of your child’s progress and activities throughout the summer. 

Are you wondering if the book really works?  Check out these recent reviews: http://nrhatch.wordpress.com/2012/05/31/show-me-how/

http://creatingcuriouskids.wordpress.com/2012/06/14/summer-fun-shortcut-show-me-how/

http://yourfamilybookclub.wordpress.com/2012/06/02/book-review-show-me-how-build-tour-childs-self-esteem-through-reading-crafting-and-cooking-by-vivian-kirkfield/

By the way, this is my 299th post!  I started blogging almost two years ago.  As a novice, I knew nothing about anything blogging.  When I look at the posts I did in the fall of 2010, I realize how much I’ve learned.  My next post will be #300…I’ll have to think of doing something special to celebrate…any ideas?

Want more information about Jake’s Sunday Post?

 http://jakesprinters.wordpress.com/ 

And here are some other bloggers who are doing Jake’s Sunday Post:

http://scrapydo.wordpress.com/2012/06/24/sunday-post-village/

Related articles

• It Takes A Village to Raise A Child – Don’t Be Ashamed (tinystepsmommy.com)
• It Takes a Village {Recipe: Cheesy Potato Fries} (sweetnicks.com)