38th CIRCUIT FOSTER & ADOPTIVE PARENT SUPPORT GROUP

Meeting Minutes – = May 8, 2007

Charlie Stevens facilitated the meeting.

Charlie opened in prayer.

Nita Puchta from Christian County took the flo= or.

Nita discussed child safety seats and the need to properly ins= tall them.

Nita had no business from the state to discuss.

Nita discussed the KIDS account which is monies children may h= ave in a fund from the state that is from the biological pa= rents social security benefits or from child support payments made to the state. No further information was provided on this subject as it was asked by a member. More information was requested.<= /p>

Foster Parents with older children were encouraged to use serv= ices provided by the Missouri Career center to help with job placements. We were also encouraged to look into scholarships provided by various organizations like the Independent living scholarship.

It was brought up also that scholarships and discounted tuition may be available for various camps. If you plan on sending your child= to a camp you should check into discounts that may be available for your adopt= ive or foster children.

Melinda took over and provided a seminar on surviving summer. Some of the highlights of the seminar are as follows:

Simplify your surroundings.

Lock out PPV on your cable box, TiVo or Satellite so your kids don’t run up the bill

Schedule activities for the children

Schedule out meals to make home life easier<= /p>

Rotate toys and clothing to simplify your surroundings

Use responsibility sheets to assign tasks out to the children = to get help with chores around the house.

Attempt to assign values to tasks to allow for a reward system=

Have a daily planner

Schedule in quiet time for yourself

Use a bored board

Find VBS, Camps, Church Camps, Summer Programs or use the YMCA to give the children something to do outside the h= ome

Find Free Resources.

The sheets from the seminar are at the bottom of this note.

The group collected $10 in donations

The meeting ended promptly at 8:30

Ro= y Mer= eness

Scheduling and Surviving Summer=

By Melinda Nicholson Phone 417-766-5124

It's summertime, and the living is easy--or is it?

W= ant to avoid sibling fights, tracked-in dirt, non-stop television and the "Mo= m! I'm bored!" problem?

Simplify Your Surroundings

S= ummer is no time for the delicate and the costly because all of the above will be= (1) dirtied, (2) lost, or (3) broken by summer's end.

*= Replace glass drinking glasses with plastic

*= Take up household rugs and store for when the children go back to school

Chill Out In The Kitchen

*= Prepare a large jug of your family's "house drink" each morning, whether = it's fruit juice, powdered drink mix or iced tea, and tuck it in a self-dispensi= ng plastic beverage container on a refrigerator shelf.

*= Establish a "snack site" within child reach and = you're a step ahead of ravenous children. Include healthy options like fruit, raw veggies, string cheese, animal crackers, popcorn, raisins and dried cereal instead of sugar-filled cookies or greasy potato chips. Bundle all of the a= bove into a large plastic food storage container, label it "Snacks" wi= th a permanent marker, and put it on a low refrigerator shelf.

*= Encourage independent lunch preparation by doing the same with all sandwich makings: PB&J, jar of mayo, floppy packs of lunch meat and cheese, cello pack of washed lettuce all stuffed into large open container labeled "Sandwich Makings." You pull the box out, you make your sandwich, and you replace the box.

Have a menu for the month—Re-use it each month to keep things simp= le.

Sanity and Summer Scheduling

First the sanity part—Give everyone a responsibil= ity sheet. Have them complete their responsibilities before getting freed= oms such as television, having friends over, going out, etc.<= /h5>

Pick up some of the samples I’ve provided tonight= and adapt to your family. Email me and I’ll send you a copy of them that you won’t have to re-type. My email is marvandmelinda@yahoo.com<= /o:p>

Did anyone say “I’M BORED”? Get= out the Bored Board (A monopoly looking board = with various jobs listed—pick a number or roll dice to see which one they = land on and then have them do the thing listed). Include things like write= a letter to a friend, do an act of kindness for a sibling, write a thank you letter to their case manager, etc.

Now for scheduling—*Get a calendar and just do it!

= --Be sure to list Summer School dates/times

--Write in dates of your family vacation

--Schedule dates for respite (Call providers now to get the dates on their calendar as well)

--Look through local publications and list dates and events that appeal to = you and your family

--Call local churches regarding Vacation Bible School dates/times (Often, this information is in= local publications such as “Kid’s Directory”, “Parent &am= p; Family” , etc

Savor Summer's Fleeting Sweetness
= Have a back-yard tent campout—even if you just stay until midnight and then = head indoors it’s a lot of fun!

Pick three of your favorite childhood books and read a chapter a day to= the children (even teens) One book per month! = Check to see if there is a movie of the book and show it when you finish reading = the book. Discuss what was liked about each, w= as the movie or the book better, etc?

What are your special childhood memories of summer---recreate them in so= me form with your family. I’m sure you’ll have some funnies = to tell as you re-live some of those moments.

Events to help savor summer:

http://www.nixa.com/Park/Park.htm

http://www= .bransonparksandrecreation.com/about_us.htm

Movies drive-in movie style Springfie= ld, MO

J= uly 7-Aug 26^th. Famil= y Pack tickets available free http://= www.parkboard.org/ or http://www.ci.spri= ngfield.mo.us/founders/ for upcoming movies and dates

Free Fishing Days for= all ages across Missouri on June 9-10^th. Trout stamps are free on those days, too. Call 417-895-6880

&n= bsp;

Child Safety Day Schedule

ATA Martial Arts 1440 W. Republic Rd. Saturday,= May 12, 2007

= ;

10:30 am...........Fire Marshall Bill (Fire Safety Talk)<= /o:p>

11 am...........Demo and FREE Martial Arts Class

1 pm...........Child Abduction Awareness Seminar

2 pm...........Demo and FREE Martial Arts Class

3 pm...........Drawings for Prizes

Preregistration is recommended for the FREE seminars and FREE<= o:p>

classes. Call for more information: 417-889= .9312

<= /span>

Free Art Day—Fr= ee hands-on activities for the entire family 10 a.m. to noon on June 30^th= and August 28^th at Creamery Arts Center. Call 417-862-2787 or www.springfieldarts.org

S= aturday, September 8 • McDonald's Dollar Day at the Zoo
$1 admission for children and adults all day. Gates open 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

I LOVE AMERICA—July 4^{th http://=
www.iloveamerica.ws/
FREE 4^th of July events all day!}

Go to the Titanic May= 11, May 18, October 5, October 12, October 19 and October 26 Special Field Trip Rat= e on these selected dates only $6.52 with tax exempt letter. Advance Reservations Required. Call 1-800-381-7670. <= /p>

Yakov Family Pass onl= y $59.00 June, July and August Mom, Dad and all the= kids 17 and under for only $59.00 9:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Call 877-229-256= 8

Many events at Springfield Conservation Nature= Center 417-888-4237 or www.conser= vation.state.mo.us/areas/cnc/springfd/

Springfie= ld Discovery Center FREE FAMILY DAY is October ______

website h= ttp://www.discoverycenter.org

2007 Family Fair June 2 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. FREE Admission=

Have fun and promot= e happy, healthy kids!. A few of the topics are: protec= ting your children from internet predators, water safety, auto safety, bicycle safety and much more. Everything is free. We will have games, bounce hous= es, rides, prizes, and food. The only cost to participants will be tickets wh= ich families will receive for free by visiting the various organizations' boo= ths. www.kidsafe417.com. Remingto= n's
1655 W Republic Rd Springfie= ld MO, 65807=

A Free-For-All is a community event which promotes recycling through giving away useful things instead of throwing them in the landfill. All items brought to the event = must be free, legal, and appropriate for all ages without restrictions. The ev= ents run from 11am to 7pm on the third Saturday of each month at Fashioned By Jaye, 212 South Campbell. For more information visit the Southwest Missou= ri Freecycle(TM) group http:/= /groups.yahoo.com/group/SouthwestMissouriFreecycle/ No large items, please.

Fishing Day FREE--L= ocated at Sportsman's Park Center, 2500 E. Kearne= y ages: 3-13 (children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult). All child= ren should bring their own equipment and bait. Limit one rod and reel for each participant. 4 fish limit per child. Time is from 8 a= m-noon. This is a free event!

Tons of Trucks/Tracto= rs FREE

Saturday August 11 at= Finley River Park = Contact Ozar= k Parks and Recreatio= n for more details at 417-581-7002

Free Swim at Ozark Pool—Bring your paid Ozark water bill to t= he Neal Grubaugh Swimming Pool on Saturday, June 9^th for the whole family to swim free!

Free Movies in the Pa= rk May 19^th—Cars, June 16^th—Charlotte’s Web, August 18^th=—Nanny McPhee and September 15^th—Bridge to Terabithia<= /span>

Movies start at Dusk = in the Finley River Park Ozark, MO Bring your lawn chair or blanket.

Local magazines I = find helpful:

Parent and Family

Kids Directory

Library Bookends=

Mother and Child=

Parks and Recreation calendars

YMCA calendar of even= ts

<= /o:p>