Now some of you may disagree with views here on the subject and comments and opinions are on what you as parents think on the matter.

Some view smacking as unnecessary when teaching a child right from wrong, as it highlights our inability to remain in control. Can anything really be achieved by smacking a child to “teach him/her a lesson” in the hope that “they won’t do that again in a hurry.”

Contrary to what David Lammy MP has suggested in recent opinions on the cause of the London riots, mindless thug with little respect for elders and the community around us is not the result of a lack of smacking, rather a lack of praise and positive encouragement.

Most children dread more than anything and tried to avoid these six little words with a huge meaning “I am very disappointed in you.”

Children seek approval and praise. This is done through positive activities and if noticed by parents they will not use bad behaviour as a way of getting this desired attention. As many children realise some attention is better than none at all.

Getting a smack does not highlight how disappointed in behaviour parents are. More so it breeds fear and that does not induce the notion of respect that is necessary for good development for life. Fear can have the adverse affect and lead to resentment.

What has been urged by many in the field of child behaviour and development is to listen, respect and teach. In short teach by example. A child will display learned behaviour. Born a blank canvas, children will act through the ways they see others behaving and how they are treated by us.

I ask you, is it not better to encourage them and focus on the positive ways a child acts with guidance when they go wrong? Rewarding good behaviour results in a much better result than punishing bad behaviour by smacking. Please feel free to leave your opinions and comments on the matter.

Well the wait is over as the DVD is scheduled to be released on 27th February.

However for some of our lucky followers there is the chance of winning a copy of this Barbie underwater adventure.

The DVD is packed with Barbie special features and bonus material. Learn the moves of Merliah in the never seen before ‘Do the Mermaid’ music video and much much more.

Here is a little insight into what to expect from this latest Barbie installment.

Barbie is returning again as Merliah, the fun and fashionable surf champion who’s also secretly a magical mermaid princess. Merliah and her friends from Barbie in A Mermaid Tale make a splash when she headds to Australia for a major surf competition.

When the evil mermaid Eris escapes from her whirlpool with plans to take over the throne of Oceana, Merliah and her sea friends dive in to stop her, saving the day down under. It’s a fresh new adventure in which Merliah learns that anything is possible when you stay true to yourself.

Follow on Facebook or Twitter for a chance to win a copy of Barbie in A Mermaid Tale 2. Ends 26/2/12

Each week we’ll look at one of our cities and highlight affordable and fun entertainment for the family starting with London.

For those willing to come to the big smoke there is plenty to do that won’t burn a hole in your pocket and still offer loads of fun for the family.

London Days Out:

1. Take in the city sights and witness one of the oldest traditions with the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.

2. Why not try Kew Gardens. Free to children under 17. There is an interactive play area, Climbers and Creepers, for 3-9 year olds.

3. Fun learning for free at the interactive Science Museum. Relive the Earth’s climate history from the Ice Age to the Industrial Age. www.sciencemuseum.org.uk 

4. Winston Churchill’s Britain At War Experience (Fully interactive). Get a chance to huddle in an Anderson shelter as air raid sirens blare. Check out the food that Britons ate during the war and look at the clothes that were available. www.britainatwar.co.uk Adults £12.95 Children £5.50

5. See British pop music come to life in the audiovisual spaces around the centre. Record yourself singing a favourite song or dance in front of a virtual stadium audience. www.britishmusicexperience.com. Adults £12 Children £6

Anyone with any ideas of places to share for family fun feel free to comment, all suggestions welcome.

Retailing at only £19.00,  these quality wooden sound puzzles make an affordable and temptingly worthy purchase.  So why not give your child a head start in phonics! Quote voucher code ‘likebeesdel’ for free delivery! Until 15th Feb 2012

So what do you do?  Kids still need entertaining and don’t really understand why this month should be any different than last.  Here some simple tips to keeping expenditure down to a minimum and fun to the maximum.

1.  The dark cold nights are a perfect excuse for why not to go out and spend – its too dark and too cold.  Let’s wrap up warm and stay in. So during the week why not get those board games out and challenge the family to a game of hungry hippos, cluedo, monopoly or even trivia.  You’ll be amazed at how much fun you can have.  Our favourites are things like Balderdash, Charades and Pictionary – everyone always ends up in stitches.

2.  For the weekend why not try a movie night, make some microwave popcorn (quick & easy – popping corn in the microwave with some oil and sprinkling of icing sugar or salt or just leave plain and a couple of minutes on high – until they’ve all popped), bring down the duvets, pull out all those DVD’s that you received at Christmas and snuggle up together and enjoy.

3.  When it’s raining – try a spot of puddle jumping.  Waterproofs and wellies on and off out in to the rain.  You’ll be surprised at how much fun kids can have when they’re actually allowed to jump in all the muddy puddles without getting shouted at.  Peppa Pig here we come.

4.  Picnic in the park.  Yes why not make an afternoon of it.  Pack up a few sandwiches and drinks – you don’t have to go mad – and head down to your local park.  There are always loads of kids out and about which is perfect.  Your little ones get to have a play date without you having to accommodate other kids.

5.  Which brings us on to the next idea – playdates.  Team up with other mums and take turns in having the kids.  It’s a day out for the kids with their mates and you get to have a bit of me time – at least when you don’t have the kids.  When you do, it’s surprising how much time you actually get to do jobs when the kids are playing in their bedrooms rather than under your feet.

6.  A trip down to your local Library can also be fun for the kids, but lighten up, you don’t have to be as quiet as you used to.  There’s usually a kids corner and kids can find all sort of books to browse, read and take home.  It’s surprising how much more they enjoy books they have chosen themselves.

7.  Take a trip out to the countryside, again get those wellies on and take a walk along the many footpaths.  Play games with the kids like pretending to be cowboys and indians or collect leaves, cones etc.  Giving kids something to do engages them in the activity allowing them to enjoy it more.  If you’re lucky you’ll probably find a local farmer who won’t mind you having a look at the animals – who needs a zoo or children’s farm anyway.

8.  Finally there are lots of places around the country offering free entrance to their experiences so check out local city farms, museums, and activities put on by your local councils.

With these ideas, you should comfortably make it to pay day and beyond and not have a bored child in sight.

Well why not break the cycle with these top tips from the Likebees team

1.  Make sure you set resolutions that you want to achieve not what friends or family are telling you you should do

2.  Don’t make a whole list, choose one or two things that are important to you.  Don’t forget as a busy mum or dad you only have a limited amount of time – setting too many goals means your more likely to give up on them

3.  Think about how you are going to achieve your goal.  The clearer the path the easier it is to achieve.

4.  Set resolutions that are achievable. Yes stretch yourself but don’t over do it.  If you do you’ll find yourself giving up before you’ve started

5.  Set milestones along the way and reward yourself when you achieve them.  This helps keep you motivated as you feel good about getting to each stage

6.  Remove temptation.  E.g. If you are trying to give up chocolate make sure there are none in your cupboards at home, if you are trying to spend less then hide credit cards or better still cut them up.  Your goal will be easier to achieve if temptation is remove before you start your journey

7.  Don’t punish yourself if you slip up.  It happens.  Don’t kick yourself, instead pick yourself up and have another go and this time try a little harder.

8.  If you can enroll the help of friends or family by either telling them your resolution so they can help and encourage you or team up with those that have a similar aim to you for 2012 so you can encourage and help each other.

Plus we’d love to hear what your resolutions for 2012 are so feel free to post them here or on our facebook page and of course Good Luck to you all with your resolutions

Hard-pressed parents assume that their children have no idea how much it will cost them to make a happy Christmas – but research out today re

veals that children as young as five know how much Christmas will cost their family this year … including all the trimmings.

The survey by credit card company Capital One, shows that 85 per cent of kids aged between 5 and 11 know that a standard turkey (2.5kg) costs ‘up to £20’, 79 per cent correctly identify that a Christmas pudding costs ‘under £5’ and 64 per cent know that that a Christmas Tree costs ‘up to £30’.

Despite the average cost of family spending expected to fall this Christmas to around £692 from £1,278*, 1.3 million (32 per cent of all UK kids) accurately predict that Christmas costs a family more than £600, the equivalent to the cost of a family holiday.

The research also reveals that it’s not just the trimmings they’re knowledgeable about; children aged 5-11 were shown to be particularly astute and tech savvy when it comes to presents and gadgets – with 42 per cent knowing how much a Nintendo Wii costs (£109 RRP), as well as 38 per cent accurately confirming that an iPhone costs over £200.

Whilst clearly being surprisingly financially aware, thankfully there hasn’t been a complete loss of child innocence with 67 per cent still believing that Father Christmas ‘spends the most money on Christmas’ and 8 per cent believing that Christmas costs as much as ‘a flight into sp

ace.’

Judi James, behavioural expert says: “It’s clearly a cliché to assume that kids have no real understanding of the cost of Christmas because some of the valuations in the survey would give adults a reasonable run for their money. This proves that – unlike previous generations – kids do seem to have acquired a very astute financial view of the festive period, being aware not just of the egocentric gain in terms of food and presents but also the amount needed to obtain them. This suggests good parenting in terms of messages of put

ting a price on pleasure, meaning we might just be breeding a generation of Alan Sugar-style entrepreneurs.”

Michael Woodburn, Chief Marketing Officer for Capital One, says: “We all assume that Christmas is an exercise in financial management for adults. However, maybe if we involved kids more, there could be benefits all round. ”

You may or may not have noticed but we have recently launched our very new and exciting Likebees Facebook competitions page! Each week we’ll be bringing you new competitions with the chance to win some amazing family related prizes.

This week you’ve had the chance to win a Nintendo DSI with our very first kick off competition. It doesn’t end until the 23rd so get on board and have a shot at taking this fabulous prize home for Christmas.

Simply hop onto our Facebook page, click on the competitions page link in the left navigation and follow the competition instructions. Keep your eye out each week and good luck!

So Christmas is essentially one big tradition, but all the traditions within it can sometimes get a bit lost in the chaos of consumerism. We know Christmas is a magical time for our children, whether they still believe in Santa or not, and we thought it’d be nice to recap the top 5 traditions  that make Christmas Christmas (and we’re not just talking presents).

Number one: the decorating of the house, there seems to be some kind of friendly rivalry between houses over Christmas, we never really see them going up but suddenly facades are covered in a shower of fairy lights and gardens are adorned with tacky reindeer and santa clauses. tacky or not, our kids love it!

Second up: Nativity plays, pantomimes and carols nights. Whether your kids are in them, watching them or directing them, the lead up to Christmas just wouldn’t be as exciting without them.

Third: the all important tree. Plastic or real your tree becomes the centre point of the home and a fun decorating activity for the whole family. including all the essentials; tinsel, baubles, ornaments, stars and angels, there are many ideas on when the tree should ‘traditionally go up’. Some say the 24th, some say the 23rd others say as early as the 1st. We say the earlier the better, everyone loves a good Christmas tree!

Next up, Four: Cards, crackers, stockings and…presents! The bit all our kids love the most. Just for a bit of trivia, these elements of Christmas tradition were introduced in Victorian times.

Last but certainly not least: food. When we think Christmas traditions we think piles of steaming veg, fluffy yorkshire puds, cuts of meat, crispy roast potatoes and all the delicious gravy and jelly like condiments to accompany. Perhaps the biggest Christmas tradition of all time, the family lunch and the semi comatose TV viewing session that follows. Don’t forget though, Santa and his reindeer are also a bit peckish too so leave out some cookies, carrots, milk and whisky on Christmas eve – a favourite tradition from when we were little tackers.

So our kids would like to think the end of the year is all about glittery lights, tinsel and tonnes of presents, but don’t forget the little traditions that really make Christmas, without them it would just be a season long shopping spree.

sustaining some bumps and bruises while exploring is all part of the journey,  but it’s the heart-stopping thuds we all dread right? Most houses these days have beautiful hard wood flooring or tiles as the soft comfort of the carpet begins to retreat into just the bedrooms. Imagine for a moment that you were your toddlers height, have a look about and see how many unforgivingly solid items there are within falling distance, scary.

There are plenty of baby-proofing products out there, many extremely un-attractive, but we’ve been lucky enough to come across a series of such products that are both effective and really rather funky. We’re talking about ‘Thudguard’. Featured on  BBC’s The Apprentice, their leading item is the Thudguard infant safety hat. In a choice of either blue or lilac, the cute little foam hat design will protect your little one’s precious cranium as they try out their new pins.

Other items in their baby-proofing range include table edge bumpers and door stoppers for protecting little fingers from the slam. If you’re after a way of teaching your baby to use those feet and not just finding ways of keeping them safe when they do, then a Juppy walking harness may be right up your alley. Not only does it have a cute design in a number of colours and comes in a special Juppy drawstring bag, It’s adjustable strap means parents of all heights will be spared back ache after a walking session.

We think Thudguard is pretty unique on the baby market and so, of course, we hunted out a fabulous deal for you to get your hands on some of this baby-proofing genius this Christmas. To check out the deal and find out more about these funky products click here.