When the police in Auckland, New Zealand were called to shut down a loud party last Friday, they probably expected that the party-goers would be a bunch of kids. What they probably didn't expect is that the kids would all be about five years old. But that is exactly what they found when they responded to a complaint made by what can only be described as a cranky neighbor.

The One Tree Hill Kindergarten was in the midst of their annual disco party, rocking out to Bob the Builder and the Chicken Dance when noise control officials arrived on the scene around 6:30 pm. Teacher Jenny Skerritt said the officials seemed a bit "red faced" as they ordered them to turn it down or shut it down. "I don't think it was that ragey, but it's all a matter of perspective I guess," she said.

Perspective, indeed. The babies sleeping in the very next room obviously didn't think it was too loud. Nevertheless, they turned the music down and continued with their party. And just for kicks, they plan to frame that noise abatement notice for all to see.

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Help get your child motivated for a great school year by helping them create an inspiration board, a gathering of clippings, quotes, photographs and treasures to provide a reminder of what is important and most of all, what is possible.

To start, work with your child to determine where an inspiration board could fit in their room. Is wall space available? If so, you could:

• hang a purchased cork bulletin board
• create your own custom-made version with an old frame and corkboard
• homasote is also a great material for creating a bulletin board
• chicken wire, either stapled inside an old frame or attached directly to a wall (with sharp edges carefully folded over) in conjunction with clothes pins makes a quick and inexpensive bulletin board

If wall space is unavailable, set aside some real estate on a desk, dresser, shelf, or floor for:

• a purchased easel that could safely support a bulletin board
• make an easel out of cardboard that could support something lightweight like poster board or a piece of foam core
• an old music stand

Once the display has been created is when the kid fun begins! Anything from old magazine clippings to candy bar wrappers that inspire can be attached to the board. If there seems to be an absence of motivational sayings, it can be a fun parental project to explore the words of others, whether it be Spongbob Squarepants or Eleanor Roosevelt and see if anything resonates. A trip to the library or internet search can turn up plenty of quotable quotes.

If your child needs a hero outside the family for inspiration, look no further than Beijing. Here are a couple of Olympic athletes that seem worthy of emulation for their deeds:

• Michael Phelps- An ADHD kid growing up to be "the greatest athlete of all time" is pretty awesome all on its own. But what I found particularly impressive was Phelps' humble words after winning that 8th gold medal, "Without the help of my teammates, this [wouldn't have been] possible."
• Dara Torres- While many athletes block out the world to prepare for a race, Dara Torres used her time before a semi-final race helping rival Therese Alshammar of Sweden deal with a torn swimsuit. When Torres noticed Alshammar was missing from the march into the area, she asked officials to delay the race. As if that wasn't good sportsmanlike enough, Torres also told the other swimmers what was going on so they wouldn't get anxious during the delay and was always the first to congratulate those around her once the race was finished, even when she lost the gold medal by 1/100th of a second.
• Jason Lezak- Michael Phelps got most of the press, but it was Lezak's amazing anchor leg that won the Men's 400 Relay and helped Phelps get his gold medal count to 8.

An inspiration board can serve as more than a motivational tool and gathering place for your child's favorite things, it can also provide parents a glimpse of their dreams.

Blake Peebles likes to play Guitar Hero, the video game that lets players pretend to be rock stars with a small plastic guitar. In fact, he likes to play it so much that the sixteen-year-old has dropped out of school to be able to play the game more. His hope is that he can turn his affinity for the game into a career and, so far, it looks like he might have a chance.

His parents agreed to his plans but only if he were to be tutored at home. They would rather he stayed in school, but Blake managed to wear down their resistance. "We couldn't take the complaining anymore," says his mom. "He always told me that he thought school was a waste of time." So far, Blake has won about a thousand dollars worth of prizes.

I suppose as long as the kid is learning what he would learn in school, it doesn't really matter what he does with the rest of his time, but it sure seems to me like putting all his eggs in one basket -- and a basket that has yet to show it has any real financial potential. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't let my kids quit school to play video games, no matter how good they are.

Whether you are heading to the beach, the park or just hanging out in the back yard, great snacks are an essential ingredient to a fun day. But spending hours in the kitchen preparing for your outing can spoil the fun before it has even begun. Simple snacks like fruit, chips and sandwiches are fine, but why not whip up something a little more special next time you are packing your picnic basket?

Cheaper than buying prepared foods from the store and quicker than you would think, The Observer has a list of 101 picnic recipes that can be put together in 20 minutes or less. Not all are kid-friendly (curried egg salad) and some sound downright strange (cold pizza and lemon), but all are unique and a lot more interesting than plain old potato salad and ham sandwiches.

I've bookmarked the page and will definitely reference it the next time we head out to the beach. What about you? Do you have your own crowd-pleasing picnic basket favorite?

Around here, nothing ruins Friday game night quicker than a bad deal on Uno. As my seven-year-old draws card after card, not getting what she needs to play, her chin starts to quiver and her eyes fill with tears. "It's not fair!" she howls as she finally gives in to the frustration and tosses her cards on the table in disgust. Yes, she's a sore loser.

I've witnessed this scene many times and it never fails to bring back memories of my own childhood. You see, I was a sore loser, too. My family played cards a lot and if I wasn't winning, I was pouting. If the pouting didn't work, I would begin complaining loudly. If things still didn't turn around, I would inevitably quit the game and stomp off in anger. Eventually, they stopped letting me play.

I don't understand why it was so important for me to win, but it was. And those feelings of frustration, anger and the unfairness of it all were very real to me, as I know they must be for Ellie. By this age, she knows that her sore loser behavior is unacceptable and she tries, she really tries, but she just can't help herself.

I never grew out of my competitiveness, but I did learn to handle the disappointment of losing. Unfortunately, what it took for me was being excluded from games not only by my family, but by my friends, too. Being known as the cry-baby loser among my peers was a painful experience and I am trying to help Ellie avoid that. We've had the "it's just a game" talk and we've discussed ways she can try to calm herself when she gets upset.

I've read that sore losers like Ellie (and myself) generally fall into two categories: those who are by nature easily frustrated and angered and those whose self-esteem is tied to winning and who worry about what others think of them. I think there is a little of both at play here. Do you have a sore loser in your house? How have you helped them deal?

You don't have to be in Beijing to catch the Olympic spirit!

The funny people at JibJab, masterminds behind the popular Elf cards and snowball fight have come up with a way for everyone to participate in Mount Olympus games. All you need is a digital head-shot (nearly any photo on your computer can be manipulated with JibJab's dummy-proof program) to create postcards or video highlights from the weight lifting, high dive, or rhythmic dance competitions.

My fifteen-year-old son achieved a perfect score on the high dive! We're so proud!

Did you and your significant other take a break from the kids this summer? Did you jet off to some exotic locale and enjoy some one-on-one with the one you love? Yeah, me neither. In fact, I don't know one single couple who managed to get away from the kids and spend some quality time alone together this summer. This is definitely good news for our bank accounts, but what about our relationships?

In these times of rising prices and economic uncertainty, what are parents supposed to do when they need a little time to reconnect without the pitter patter of little feet to distract them? A dinner out is nice, but a lot of couples are opting for an adult staycation. It's just like the family staycations we've been talking about, minus the family.

Checking into a local hotel for a night or two may seem a waste with kids, but it definitely has some appeal for parents alone. Lining up a weekend sitter and escaping to a nearby resort or just a nice downtown hotel is the perfect way to get away without getting too far away. I don't know about you, but the opportunity to lounge by a pool, sleep late and order room service is all I really want from a vacation anyway. What about you? Have you enjoyed an adult staycation this year?

It's hard to believe, but we are mere weeks (days for some parts of the country!) away from returning to the early morning scrambling to get kids ready for school.

One of the biggest time-wasters of those precious pre-dawn hours involves the all-important "Choosing of the Clothes". However, we've found some craft ideas that when combined with a little pre-planning can make this year wardrobe worry-free for your kids!

One super-simple tactic to try out before the buses even start rolling requires- absolutely nothing! Just ask your child to create a kid out of the clothes they plan on wearing the next day somewhere in their room. If it's the sort of room where neatness reigns, this should take care of the problem, and it can be a fun project for kids to style and pose their "clothing kids" differently every night.

However, if your child isn't diligent about keeping their room picked up, a "clothing kid" on the floor may just add to the madness. If that's the case, try taking the organizing upward! Keep an eye out at thrift stores or garage sales for a sturdy coat tree, or make your own using pine boards from the lumberyard. In addition to assisting with assembly, painting a wooden clothing holder to suit their fancy will give the child a sense of ownership. Every evening, the clothing tree should be decorated with the next day's outfit, including socks, underwear and a belt hung from the hooks.

If the bedroom lackings the floor space necessary for a clothing tree, a closet will do the trick and provide the additional perk of allowing the child to plan their wardrobe for the entire week. Hanging organizers can hold six day's worth of clothing and larger ones (not the shoe organizers, which will quickly become too cramped to hold an entire outfit) have enough space to allow labels (quickly and easily created with felt letters glued onto a felt rectangle label and then sewn onto the organizer) to be attached to the side or on the top, hanging down in the openings.

And if closet space is also problematic, here's the last (and greatest!) idea: large felt tags that fit OVER the hangers. The genius part of this idea is that it can actually SAVES space by getting pants out of the drawer and sharing the same place as the shirts! Supplies required are minimal: just a large enough piece of felt (suggested size is 18 x12") for each day of the week, strong hangers, and perhaps some clothes pins to make sure the pants stay on the hangers until they are needed. Cut the top corners off the felt rectangle, cut a hole in the top for the hanger to fit through, slice two X's in the bottom to hold socks and underwear and embellish as desired. (This would be an excellent place to practice some sewing skills! Buttons and rickrack would be adorable!)

With just a little planning, getting dressed in the morning can be a painless process for everyone and get the day off to a great start!

What's the most dangerous sport for high school girls? It's not what you might guess. It's not soccer, softball, or even kickboxing -- it's cheerleading. It turns out, according to a new report, that cheerleading accounts for nearly two thirds of all catastrophic sports injuries over the last twenty-five years among high school girls. Perhaps that explains something about our current president.

Don't think this is about twisted ankles and broken fingernails, either. We're talking death and dismemberment here. Admittedly, strains and sprains account for more than half of the injuries, but it's still no walk in the park. Of the more than one hundred fatal, disabling, or otherwise serious injuries suffered by high school girls, two thirds took place amongst cheerleaders.

Cheerleading has changed in recent years, becoming more gymnastic in nature. This has contributed to the increase in injuries. According to Dr. Frederick O. Mueller, who lead the research team that produced the report, "If these cheerleading activities are not taught by a competent coach and keep increasing in difficulty, catastrophic injuries will continue to be a part of cheerleading."

When I was in high school, I chose the swim team over football -- no three hundred pound guys trying to knock you down and jump on you, plus there are all the female swimmers running around in their swimsuits. I think I'll encourage the same choice for my kids.

Lots of kids put up lemonade stands to bring in a few dollars for summer fun; it's almost an American tradition. Instead of a trip to an amusement park, a new bike, or even a college education, however, a thirteen-year-old girl in Wisconsin brought in well over a thousand dollars to help fight childhood cancer.

Sidney Ross's fundraising efforts were made in support of the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, a non-profit inspired by a young cancer patient who wanted to help fight cancer. Alex set up a lemonade stand and, by the time she died at the tender age of eight, had raised over a million dollars for cancer research. Meanwhile, other kids all around the country have followed her example and together have raised more than twenty million dollars.

This is the second year Sidney Ross has participated in the fundraising effort and does so in memory of a young neighbor who died of cancer. Sidney was four years old when the girl died. "I just remember always seeing her," she says. As for the fundraising, "there is not a whole lot we can do as kids," Sidney says, "but if we all do something small it can add up." I'd have to say that what she has done is anything but small. Kudos to Sidney!

Little Levi Mcconaughey is certainly making the rounds. His father, periodically shirtless actor Matthew Mcconaughey recently took the newborn to his first concert. The concert was that of John Mellancamp. Levi, born mere weeks ago to the actor and supermodel girlfriend Camila Alves has already been surfing.

Now, I'm assuming this kid had his shots and a doctor's blessing to be out among the masses. I'm also assuming since McConohottie is a celebrity that he and the little tyke were able to keep the crowds at bay. They probably had special seating, etc. to ensure a little space for the newborn.

Says Mcconaughey, he wants to prepare his son to be around people and noise. My guess is they plan on taking their little one with them everywhere they go. Mcconaughey has no plans to change his lifestyle now that he's a father, and says one doesn't need to. I have a newsflash for him--parenthood DOES change you, and you cannot live the exact same life you did before (especially if you were a jetsetting, camera-friendly celebrity like McConohottie) once you have a child. Unless, of course, your child isn't really a part of your life As for Mcconaughey, that doesn't seem to be the case. He seems keen to include his son in all his favorite activities. Good for you, Matthew--that's what being a daddy is all about, right?

What do you think? Does life change infinitely and there are things you simply must give up when you become a parent, or can you simply absorb your child into your current lifestyle?

If you're tired of cheap broken puzzle and game boxes spilling bits and pieces everywhere, try this method for keeping it all together.

Schools have banned tag and other chase games. Playground equipment is safe and non-threatening. Swings are short so they can't swing too high. Climbing a tree is a lost art. Keeping kids safe is important, but are we protecting our children too much? There does seem to be a bit of a backlash against over-protection. First, there was The Dangerous Book for Boys, then Gever Tulley's TEDTalk, and now a new study from Play England, part of the National Children's Bureau in England says that children are missing out on an essential part of childhood -- risk.

The study found that half of all children are not allowed to climb trees and one in six is not allowed to play tag or other chase games. Adrian Voce, director of Play England, says that kids "are not enjoying the opportunities to play outside that most people would have thought of as normal when they were growing up." He also noted that nearly three times as many kids ended up in the hospital after falling out of bed as after falling out of trees.

Now, I know it can be difficult for parents to watch kids get themselves into dangerous situations and the natural reaction, when they get hurt, is to ban the activity that caused the accident, but the truth is kids can run into poles walking through the mall (as my son did the other evening) just as easily as playing "tickle pirate" at the playground.

Sure, you don't want your kids to suffer serious damage, but a few bumps and bruises, if you ask me, builds character. My kids are forever running into things and falling down and they've learned you just get up and get on with it. That seems to me like a good attitude to take.

The name of this column is "Childhood Unplugged", but that doesn't mean an Amish existence is the only way to get kids to flex their creative muscles! Advances in technology make it possible for even young children to accomplish amazing things with electronics that are much more educational (and fun!) than achieving a high score on Guitar Hero or amassing enormous bank accounts on Rune-Scape.

Back when I was a kid (before the days of Atari 2600 's Tank Pong, mind you) the most advanced technology allowed in grubby little hands was a tape recorder. Working with what we had, my siblings and I created news broadcasts, commercials complete with cheesy rhyming jingles, and found ways to make some amazing sounds effects and not-so-amazing voices to narrate recreations of our favorite fairy tales and children's books. (The Three Little Pigs was one of our best works due to my wise casting of a little brother with the inability to pronounce the letter L , in the role of the big bad wolf. The resultant, "Widdle Pig! Widdle Pig! Wet me come in!" was a definite crowd pleaser.)

Are you raising a creative genius whose creations are taking over your home? Quick! Grab your camera.