13 things to do to make your Halloween safe!

Remember getting all dressed in your costume to go trick or treating? Pure spooky joy. To keep it fun, everyone needs to stay safe. Here are 13 helpful tips to make sure your kids have a healthy and happy Halloween.

• Have adult supervision. Accompany your kids if you don’t think they’re old enough to trick-or-treat on their own.
• There is safety in numbers. If they’re old enough to trick-or-treat without an adult, tell your kids to stay in a group.
• Map out your plan. Designate a route before your kids begin trick-or-treating, and make sure they stick to it.
• Take the long way 'round. Have your kids trick-or-treat in areas where there are a lot of people around. They should also avoid taking short-cuts through alleys and parking lots.
• Try tick-or-treat-friendly homes. Ensure your kids only visit houses with lights on. And, you might also suggest the houses they visit have some sort of Halloween decoration on the porch.
• Stay outside. Make sure your kids don’t go inside someone’s house. They can get their candy from the porch.
• Remain visible. Dress your kids in a bright costume so others can see them. If their costume is dark, have your kids wear reflective strips or carry a glow stick or flashlight.
• Remember, shorter = safer.Goes without saying but just in case you forget, ensure your kids’ costumes aren’t so long that they can trip over them.
• Don't cover the face. Instead of masks, have your kids wear make-up so they can see better.
• Quality-check treats. Check your kids’ candy before they eat it. Throw out any candy that is not in its original wrapper or looks like it has been tampered with.
• Say "no" to strangers.Tell your kids to never accept a ride or go anywhere with a stranger.
• Obey the law. Encourage your kids to follow all the regular rules for walking around. That includes looking both ways before crossing, obeying all traffic laws and using cross walks and crossing lights where available.
• Have a great time! Finally, make sure your kids have tons of fun and get lots and lots of candy.

Julie Clark, founder of Baby Einstein

I spoke to Julie Clark this week.
Deep breath.
For those of you who don't know Julie Clark, she is the founder of Baby Einstein and one of my personal heroes. After getting off the phone with Julie I was in a state of shock for a few hours. Not only is she an amazing business person and mom entrepreneur but she is totally down to earth and possibly the sweetest person I have ever spoken with.

You might think Julie is my hero because she sold her company to Disney for an undisclosed amount. (I have no idea how much but I think it is fair to say A LOT) That is just the end of her story. She is my hero for three reasons.

1. Because she believed in herself and continued to work towards her dream even when people said no.
2. She developed and ran her business with 2 little kids.
3. She is rich and successful and she is still down to earth, kind and real.
   

Nothing inspires me more than strong women. Thank you Julie for sharing your story with us an inspiring so many mom entrepreneurs. I am so happy for you.

I will link my article about Julie here as soon as it is up on Entrepreneur.com so you can read about her whole story. You will not want to miss it!

Just because you have a child....

Just because you have a child doesn't mean you lost your highly trained palate or you can no longer be a coffee snob. We went out before the kids moved in, why should we stop now? You don’t!

Have you said, “I wish I could finish a sentence with another adult.”? Or “Will I ever read anything other than Goodnight Moon? You Can!

Have you been at the park dreaming of your previous career, and thinking, "At least I had bathroom breaks and didn’t smell like spit up." So Did I!

And that is why we created tumble & tea café. Not for them -- but for us! Sure, the kids have an amazing indoor playground, clowns and super heroes occasionally visit and yes, we have apple juice and gold fish to name a few menu items for them. But really, …THIS PLACE IS FOR US!

A hip, diverse, wi-fi café with great food, music, comfortable couches, magazines and most importantly-other people just like you.

Come on in! It is the family restaurant you have been waiting for.

And if you walk in and say, "Why didn’t I think of this?" or "I swear I thought of doing something like this before!", contact us. We are franchising.