Regular readers here know that I’m very mean to my children and don’t let them eat cereal that’s full of sugar. Heck, I even mention that in my “about me” blurb to the right, there! I’ve noticed over the past few months that certain cereal manufacturers have begun to put the nutrition facts right on the front of the box, which I LOVE. I was annoyed, a little, that this little practice hadn’t been put into place by ALL cereal manufacturers. I’m pleased to report, however, that General Mills cereals now report their nutrition facts right at the top of the box, front and center. Yay, General Mills!

It was only because of this, that I realized Lucky Charms is not really as bad as I thought it was, sugar-wise. It has 11 grams of sugar per serving. Still higher than the 10 grams or less that I usually shoot for, but certainly not as bad as, say, RAISIN BRAN. I know I’m probably being lame about the whole sugar thing. It’s not like they aren’t eating yogurt, which has a crapton of sugar in it. What’s my problem, anyway? I guess I just like bossing my children around with my arbitrary, “haha! Mommy says this has too much sugar!” rules.

I probably should focus my attention a bit more on the amount of calcium and Vitamin D my kids are getting. I was told recently that the American Academy of Pediatrics recently doubled the vitamin D recommendation for children. Probably not as big a deal in Colorado, what with our 300+ annual days of sunshine, but there ya go. I just learned that General Mills Big G kid cereals are calcium and vitamin D fortified – this list includes Kix, Lucky Charms, Trix, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and others. They also have at least 8 grams of whole grain per serving.

You can learn more at growupstrong.com.

Trying to get organized in 2009? Check out Qlubb.com, a site designed for managing groups and events. You can go and set up your own little page for your family, book club, classroom, mommy group, scout troop, whatever. It has a built in calendar where members can enter event information and RSVP to events as well. You can also upload pictures and files, and add useful links for the members in your group to check out.

If you’re spending too much time trying to organize and manage your group and less time actually enjoying your group, this may be just what you need to tidy things up. You can even use the site within your own family to keep track of appointments, soccer games, babysitting gigs, and that sort of thing. Check it out at Qlubb.com.

Kid-to-Kid is not new to me. I’ve been shopping there sporadically since they opened about 12 or so years ago right next to Kayley’s old daycare. And I’ve had a love/hate relationship with Kid-to-Kid over the years. I’ve been there many times looking for reasonably priced toys for my kids, and I’ve been annoyed with them probably a good dozen times for various reasons. My annoyance revolved around the fact that the store was usually too overcrowded, too disorganized, and with items priced way too high. My rationale is, I’m cheap. If I’m making the decision to buy items used instead of new, there’s no way in hell I’m paying just a few dollars shy of full price for it. Hello? The stuff is USED. I have no way of knowing the history of it. That baby swing could have been lovingly taken care of by a nice family, or it could have been kicked down an entire flight of stairs and fallen out the back of someone’s pickup on the way here. With that in mind, I’m thinking, it should be priced at $19.99, not $69.99. Because of my outrage at their overpriced stuff, I’ve purchased nearly all of my “gently used” toys, clothing, and equipment from the twin club garage sales, or actual neighborhood garage sales, where items are actually priced as if they are, y’know…USED.

However, I’m changing my tune just a bit. I had reason to hit up Kid-to-Kid recently for the first time in over a year. They’ve changed ownership, completely remodeled the store, and it looks FANTASTIC. It’s clean, well organized, and every item I saw was in tip-top shape. No toys strewn throughout the aisles. No stained clothing. Just aisles and aisles of neatly organized items, beautiful new signage, new laminate wood-looking floors throughout the store, and friendly, helpful associates actually WORKING in the store, ready to help me find anything I needed. I glanced through their book selection and probably 85% of the books are good quality children’s literature, too. I bought three classics for $1.99 each. VERY reasonably priced, in my opinion. In fact, they have a little book club you can join where children can get a free book each month.

I’ll be hitting up Kid-to-Kid again, for sure. This has been by far my best experience over the past 12+ years. The whole atmosphere of the store has changed for the better. You know how often those resale shops have a real thrift-store feel to them? They have that funky smell, y’know? Kid-to-Kid used to be that way, but not since their remodel. They’ve shed their aura of poverty, and it’s almost like walking into a Gymboree store. Definitely the more upscale of the resale shops I’ve visited.

Check them out if you’re in the Denver/Aurora area. They’re located at Mississippi and Chambers, in the strip mall where Michael’s is. Thumbs up from here!

For more information on the Aurora location, visit their website here: Aurora Kid-to-Kid

Kid-to-Kid
15035 E. Mississippi
Aurora, Colorado 80012
Phone 303.752.2757
Email aurora@kidtokid.com

Hours:
10AM – 7PM Mon-Fri
10AM – 6PM Sat
11AM – 4PM Sun

Mmmm! My kids love these, and you can get a free sample of custom designed Fruit Roll-ups by signing up for the Boxtops for Education newsletter. Just click the button above!