Kiwi Families

23/08/2023

19/08/2023

💖Add your whānau pledge to learn something, play something, or listen to something new in te Reo for Māori Language Week this year. They're giving away some epic hoodies just for signing up! 💖

Join the Māori Language Movement.

08/08/2023

When it hails at our place, the kids head out to play... in bare feet 🤣🤣🤣😍.
fun

02/08/2023

💖Love this! Especially the way to reframe in number 2. That was possibly the best advice I got as a new parent when I was struggling with my emotions (and massive lack of sleep 😁).

Although some of the phrases you're used to saying regularly might seem harmless, they can cause your kids to grow up with a victim mentality — or to believe that they can't succeed.

30/07/2023

😔The paradox of time and money. One of the hardest things for parents to balance!

SON: "Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
DAD: "Yeah sure, what is it?"
SON: "Daddy, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?"
SON: "I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "If you must know, I make $100 an hour."
SON: "Oh! (With his head down).
SON: "Daddy, may I please borrow $50?"
The father was furious.
DAD: "If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I work hard everyday for such this childish behavior."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.
The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?
After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think:
Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $ 50 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.
DAD: "Are you asleep, son?"
SON: "No daddy, I'm awake".
DAD: "I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier. It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here's the $50 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, smiling.
SON: "Oh, thank you daddy!"
Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.
DAD: "Why do you want more money if you already have some?"
SON: "Because I didn't have enough, but now I do.
"Daddy, I have $100 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I want to play with you."
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness. It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life.
We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts.
Author Unknown

Truth 💯. KNOWYOURWORTH

15/07/2023

Some family craft time this Sunday?

As we approach Matariki, there are some wonderful Matariki crafts you can do with your children to celebrate.

10/07/2023

🤔Not sure I totally agree with this cleaning frequency quiz. We definitely don't clean our duvet cover monthly... And I can't see the kids ever cleaning the cat bowl daily 😆😅.

Find out if you’re cleaning these 12 household items frequently enough, according to cleaning experts.

07/07/2023

Renovating a bedroom, why not get the kids to help out? 😆😅

16/06/2023

🥰 This weekend, 16-18 June, tens of thousands of kids around the country will participate in a range of fun, creative and exciting challenges as part of The World Vision 40 Hour Challenge.
If you think your child may want to take part – head to www.40hour.org.nz to help them set their fundraising challenge. It's not too late to take part!

We choose to see the world not as it is, but as it could be. We know exactly what’s at stake. ​Not just for us, but for our generation.​Every day in Malawi, ...

08/06/2023

🥰 Just got sent a link to this awesome little animation. It's really catchy, I've still got the tune stuck in my head, 'sea, sea, sea'...

A Kiwi Went To Sea, Sea, Sea - is a fun song created to the popular tune, 'A Sailor Went To Sea, Sea, Sea. Children will learn the Māori names for some of ou...

11/05/2023

A lovely care pack just arrived from with Vitamin C gummies. The kids just tried them, and went straight back for a second. So that's a big tick! Perfect for winter lurgies!

10/05/2023

🥰A lie in? Breakie in bed? Handmade cards or gifts? Something new and shiny wrapped with a bow? How do y'all celebrate Mother's Day?

Mother’s Day is a special day where mothers all around the world are recognised and celebrated. The celebration takes many forms from house to house, and country to country, but for the most part it’s a day where mothers get the chance to put their feet up and be well and truly spoilt! When is

30/04/2023

🐓 Yesterday we said goodbye to our rooster Lucky. We raised him from an egg, and rescued him from the coop when the hens turned on him.
From the brink of death, we nursed his wounds in the laundry, hand fed him, and beyond all odds he survived, and we named him Lucky.
He spent many nights on the kids laps watching TV with them. Cuddling together, they became best of friends!
We then spent many weeks reintroducing him back to the coop, one day at a time. Finally he had his flock and a happy life... until the neighbors complained about his crowing 🥺.
So we had to sell him, and needless to say, our Saige was brought to tears with grief, she cried for many hours with loss in heart.
These are the lessons you learn in the country. They're not easy, they're not fun. But learning to grieve properly now helps build resilience down the road when loss comes again.
We cannot protect our children from emotional pain, it's part of being human. But we can wrap our love around them, and guide them through it, and help them understand its normal and OK.
And of course it's more than OK for us to shed a tear or two too. 🐓

30/04/2023

🤣

30/04/2023

🎓🎓🥰 Considering online tutoring for your children this term? Check out our recent Cluey Learning review.

Saige took Cluey Learning for a whirl, and really enjoyed it. The tutors were great, and the learning platform is awesome. Highly recommended!

Cluey Learning is an innovative online tutoring platform that is growing rapidly in Australia and New Zealand, and getting great feedback from parents on

20/04/2023

🍪🍪With Anzac Day around the corner, why not get your bake on with the kids this weekend. These are soooo easy to make, and kid's just love 'em! 🥰

This is one of the more classic Anzac Biscuit recipes you'll find. They're so easy to make, and kids just love em, so you might want to make a double batch!

18/04/2023

🥰 Some school holiday craft inspiration for you and your kids! Here's some entries from our Resene Craft Competition. 🥰

06/04/2023

🌦🌦The weather is looking a little marginal for parts of the country this Easter! But if you are heading out and about these school holidays, we've got some great day walk options for you, plus top safety tips from the awesome people at New Zealand Mountain Safety Council

Aotearoa-New Zealand has hundreds of walks and hikes for all members of the whānau, no matter how old they are. For young families easing into the hobby

19/03/2023

🥰📚Special back-to-school offer! Get your FREE 30-day trial of Reading Eggs plus a huge 38% off a 12-month subscription for existing customers! 📚🥰
https://readingeggs.co.nz/kiwifamilies3/

Watch your child’s confidence, motivation and progress skyrocket in just 15 minutes a day! Designed to grow with your child, Reading Eggs was created by experienced educators to help your child learn to read and prepare for school.
Ideal for homeschoolers and classroom learners alike, try the multi-award-winning online reading programme for kids aged 2–13. Children love the self-paced reading and phonics lessons, which perfectly match their ability and cover the essential literacy skills needed for school success.

*30-day free trial allows you to add up to 4 children and is valid for new customers in NZ only.

See how Reading Eggs works with a FREE trial for 30 days! Try the award-winning online reading program for ages 2 to 13.

14/03/2023

Literally us last night, v. tired today... 🙃

The struggle is real...

10/03/2023

Kia ora to our Auckland fam's. This new show looks awesome if your kids are into theatre.

Ahoy there! Here’s a whale of a tale.
Don’t miss this much-loved New Zealand stage adventure, where high seas, high adventure and hi-jinks abound. Back by popular demand, The Lighthouse Keeper’s Lunch is a story made for audience enjoyment, featuring an operating lighthouse, a seaworthy vessel and an enormous rescue at sea!

https://timbray.org.nz/the-lighthouse-keepers-lunch/

09/03/2023

I asked ChatGPT to write a poem for my wife. She loved it! 🤣🤣🤣

09/03/2023

This kids probiotic care pack arrived from the beautiful people over at BePure Wellness. Can't wait to try it out next week. Our kids can be a little *ahem* 'discerning' when it comes to vitamins and probiotics, so it should be a good consumer test 😂

12/02/2023

Kia Kaha Kiwi families. Take care of your neighbours, take care of yourselves. The next few days are going to be wild and unpredictable. But we are resilient and strong, we are better together, and we will get through!

09/02/2023

🏡Hey Fams, is anyone planning on something for Neighbour's Day coming up in March? (now it goes for the whole month, which is great so we a handful of weekends to choose from).

We've been thinking of hosting a neighbourhood BBQ, but it's a bit outside our comfort zone to be honest... 😱

Be a part of Ngā Kaitautoko, a learning network made up of organisations or individuals who want to support the Neighbours Aotearoa kaupapa.

03/02/2023

10/01/2023

... dammit, this is true. Who makes these mugs 🤣

08/01/2023

Parents. Try removing these 4 words when talking to your kids. Shelly Lefkoe calls these 'judgement words'. Used regularly, over time they may help set up limiting beliefs, that can stay with us for a lifetime.

The next time your child makes a mess trying to make breakfast, instead of saying, 'you're not doing it right', you could try 'there could be a better way to do that...'

Instead of 'you're really good at drawing pictures' you could try 'I really like what you're drawing there, what do you think about it...'

Many of our own limiting beliefs come from our own childhoods, where we were judged by parents, teachers and friends. We attached meaning to those words, and over time that becomes very 'real', and can even define us.

Be your child's mentor, their confidant, and their biggest fan! You don't need to be their judge.

05/01/2023

🥶 🥵 Winter or Summer, Queenstown is the coolest little adrenaline capital in the world! Here's our 'short' list of 60 things to do in Queenstown with kids: https://www.kiwifamilies.co.nz/articles/queenstown-children-beyond-bungee/

23/12/2022

🤣🤣🤣🤣Chrissy fails, love it, could not stop laughing!

20/12/2022

🥰Reusable water balloons!🥰 What a freakin cool idea. We take them for a spin:

Poppy challenges George to a water balloon fight. Will Mr Dino and Mrs Uni team up? Are they even allowed to get wet?

16/12/2022

🤣🤣🤣 must be a whole other family living at my place...

So. Much. Laundry. 👚👕👖🩲🩳🩱🧦

12/12/2022

🥰🥑 Our very last giveaway for 2022! Win dinners for a week with Bargain Box NZ! 🥰🥑

https://www.kiwifamilies.co.nz/competition/win-dinners-for-a-week-with-bargain-box/

Take one thing off your plate and let Bargain Box sort dinner for a week. In 5 easy steps, you can serve up tasty, nutritious meals the whole family will love, at a fraction of the cost. Bargain Box is the affordably delicious meal kit making dinner time simple.

Enter on the link above. And because we're feeling the FESTIVE spirit this week, we're giving another bonus entry to our Facebook fam :-) Love this post, tag a couple of besties, and tell us below what the best thing to eat at Chrissy time is?

Competition closes at 11.30pm on 15 December. Entry Terms are available at the link below. This giveaway is not associated with Meta.

What's for dinner at your place this week? For heaps more great giveaways, check out our Competitions section.

09/12/2022

😍 last chance to enter this one my friends. And this is the second-to-last giveaway for the year! So enter now:

Check out the homepage for an easy recipe using Lisa's dips! For heaps more great giveaways, check out our Competitions section.

09/12/2022

This seems like a good law change🙂? Surely giving partners the choice to stay home together and raise their newborn for a few weeks would be good for bubs? We only had 14 weeks paid leave I think with our kids, so it wasn't even an option then!

Parents should be able to take parental leave together to better bond with their babies, Nicola Willis says.

01/12/2022

🥰😄Travelling these school holidays? Find out what V.I.K's are, and why it might make your next holiday that little bit more special!
Check out Poppy & George's latest vid:

Poppy and George holiday in Queenstown, and become VIK's at the Holiday Inn. But what will Mr Dino and Mrs Uni do while they're gone?

30/11/2022

😍🥰 OMG it's giveaway time! And this time it's a trampoline from Jumpflex Trampolines. Just in time for Christmas!!! 🥰😍

Jumpflex® Trampolines are made with top quality materials, designed to keep your young ones safe and sound as they have outdoor fun all year round.

So tag in some besties below and tell them why they deserve one of these awesome tramps in their backyard.

Then hit up the link in the chat to enter. And cross y'all fingers 'n toes! Your kids could be jumping their hearts out this Chrissy!!!

But be quick!

This competition ends at 11:30PM on 4 December. Terms can be found on the site. This competition is in no way associated with Meta 😊

How good would this look in the backyard this Chrissy? For heaps more great giveaways, check out our Competitions section.

28/11/2022

How's those Chrissy lists coming along families, not getting out of control... ? 🙃

21/11/2022

🤣🤣🤣 gotta love a baby elephant...

19/11/2022

LOL, I literally pulled out the Santa card yesterday 🤣 It must be December soon... 😂😂

Yep every single day 🙋🏻‍♀️😂