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Peekabond Develops New Video Messenger App for Global Families with young children

Peekabond Develops New Messenger App for Global Families

Peekabond released a new messenger app! Today, and with every day, our whole mission is to strengthen global family ties and create memories together.

Our team has spent the last few months interviewing many of you to redesign the app and create an experience that you will love. We know from our many users, that creating videos for your young child, creates memories that will last a lifetime. 

And so today, we are happy to announce a massive upgrade to Peekabond. We have so many cool and fun features that will help your whole family create memories and meaningful connections.

Curious to see what we have in store? Read on!

Reaction Videos

One of the most requested features from our community was seeing the reaction (that first smile) to a video you’ve sent. As of today that is now possible!

When you receive a video from a young child, you can record your reaction while watching their video.

But wait, this also works the other way! When they watch your video, the app can record their reaction too. We can catch their genuine smile, while they watch your video!

Try Peekabond by clicking here

A Love Bank to save all your memories

We know that young children learn by repetition. Every time a child enjoys an activity, they always say “again”. So now you and your young child can watch all the videos over and over.

We have created a love bank where all your videos are kept. The love bank stores all the videos you received, all the videos you liked as well as all the videos you sent.

Make screen time family time, as your child enjoys watching the videos and their own reactions over and over!

More Cards

Now you have access to over 80+ play activities and inspiration for interactive videos for your young child.

Choose from our “stack” of cards or search for inspiration by age. Whatever you decide, there will be plenty to choose from!

Try Peekabond by clicking here

Respond With Stickers and Filters

We added stickers and filters to our video camera, so you can make your videos even better. We also improved the camera itself, so that it is crispier and more fun to use.

Try adding an animated sticker next time you do a video!

Private Chat Function

Finally! We added private messaging so you and your young child can have 1:1 interactions.

As parents, you have full control over who can chat with your child. Adding family and friends is easy and secure using your private passcode. Only people you accept can interact with your family.

Try Peekabond by clicking here

We are Here to Get You Connected

If you’d like to get serious about connecting with your little one at a distance, I’d love for you to download the newest app and let us know what you think.

Richard, a grandfather in Italy said this about Peekabond:

“It’s like WhatsApp but better, and it helps make the other person smile. The activity cards make your videos fun or teach you something new.”

Or see what Lisanne, a mother in Australia says:

“It’s a great opportunity to build better bonds, regardless of the time zones or the locations that you’re in.”

We invite you to try Peekabond here.

About Anieke

Anieke is the Founder and CEO of Peekabond. Anieke is an ex-Venture Capital investor having worked on impact investments and consumer tech deals for the past 8 years of her career. Anieke founded Peekabond from a personal passion because she is an aunt of a 3 year old niece in Australia. She immediately began searching for alternative ways to bond remotely with her little niece. But she couldn’t find a real solution, so she made it her mission to create the best digital platform possible. To build beautiful bonds across generations, continents, and cultures. To connect with or follow Anieke click here 

Join us at Peekabond

Peekabond is an interactive video messaging app designed for young children to connect with family at a distance. Use our fun and age-appropriate activity cards as inspiration to send video messages to young grandchildren, cousins, nieces and nephews. Create, share, and safely store playful moments with your family and friends. Perfect for parents who want their kids to create memories with far away family members and friends. If you would like to try Peekabond click here

 

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8 Tips For Creating Summer Habits in Young Children

8 Tips for Creating Summer Habits with Young Children by Alyea Sandovar 

I think we can all appreciate how difficult it can be to build healthy habits as an adult. A lot of the time, we know what’s good for us! But putting action behind this knowledge is a whole different story.

That’s why installing healthy habits in children is so important. Wellness doesn’t happen overnight. Encouraging good habits daily helps to build the foundation of a happy, fulfilling life.

How family at a distance can help

 

Family at a distance can model healthy habits during connection points. Whenever you speak or connect with the little one, take a moment to show them a healthy habit you do and why you do it. 

So what kind of healthy habits can you share with young children? Below are our tips for the 8 most important habits to build in your young child.

Habit #1: Staying Safe

One of the first things you might teach your little ones is the importance of safety.  Simple everyday things that keep them safe in the world. Crossing the road safely and wearing seat belts etc. Teaching children to be conscious of their own safety helps to keep them from danger and introduces responsibility. These are habits we can demonstrate ourselves. 

Tip: Involve your little one by asking them to press the button on the road crossing for example. These habits become so ingrained they are second nature as adults.

Habit #2: Eating Well

Eating healthy food allows us to function at our best. Children can be noticeably different when consuming foods that aren’t good for them. Introducing healthy eating habits and healthy foods at a young age helps them to feel more comfortable with good food as they grow up.  Encouraging your little one to try as many healthy foods as possible is a great start – even if they spit them out! It can take up to ten tries for a child to start accepting a new food. So don’t be disheartened if it ends up on the floor half a dozen times.

Tip: A good way to get kids excited about healthy food is to involve them in food choices.  This is nice to do when cooking but isn’t always possible if you have time restrictions. A simple solution is with food shopping.  If you are buying carrots for example, ask your little one which carrots look the tastiest. When you eat them at home, you can support their choice by talking about how delicious the carrots that they choose where to eat!

Habit #3: Being Active

As adults, we can struggle with the notion of exercise. Our exercise habits can vary drastically from one person to the next. It’s important for your child to feel comfortable and confident when trying out all forms of movement. Exercising is good for your mental health, yet adults can have complicated feelings about it.

Exercising from an early age helps to teach your child about their body. Finding clubs or groups such as swimming lessons is a good starting point. Something they get into the habit of attending every week. When they become adults, they will be familiar with a weekly exercise routine.

Tip: Make it a habit to spend time outside playing with your children, either in the park or in the backyard. If you do not have access to a playground, clear out the living room and put some fun music to dance to, anything to help your child get active. 

Habit #4: Caring for the mind

Maintaining good mental health is a real balancing act for most adults. When we take care of our mental health, we can be relaxed and content with our life. Teaching children to understand their emotions and respond to them in a healthy way is vital for good health and happiness.

As we know, children follow by example. How you treat yourself in front of your child can have a big impact on them. Refraining from negative self-talk is important. Managing your own emotions well and teaching your child to pause before reacting to their immediate feelings.

Tip: Speak positive words about yourself outloud and notice your positive attributes regularly. Your young child will pick up on it!

Habit #5: Financial Wisdom

Financial wellness has a big impact on our stress levels. Money worries are among the topmost stressful components to our existence.

Children inherit our attitudes towards money. If you were brought up seeing money as a difficult thing to obtain, then the chances are you are likely to feel as though you don’t deserve money as an adult. You can show your children that money is available to them. When old enough, trusting your little one with a bit of money can help them learn healthy habits. Children love this feeling of autonomy. The important thing is to teach them that money is a powerful tool that they can use to achieve things.

Tip: Get a little piggy bank and show your child how to save money from gifts and things they receive. If you are at a distance you can have a similar piggy bank to show them how you do it at home. 

Habit #6: Healthy Connections

Cultivating good relationships with others is an important aspect of life. Children develop relationships from a young age. Through this we can teach them to recognize the good qualities of a relationship. Open communication, respect, boundaries, and empathy. Helping your little one express their emotions within a relationship builds good communication skills.  Allowing them to acknowledge their feelings and share them with others. When your child has a negative interaction, such as bullying or being disrespected, as a parent you can talk about the value of boundaries and self-worth.  

Tip: When a young child (even if they are speaking age) reacts strongly, become an investigator. Before punishing a child for their reaction, try to understand why they behaved as they did. Ask them questions about it – “Did you want to do X instead?” or “Did Y upset you”? Then teach them how to take deep breaths to regulate their feelings

Habit #7: Sleeping

Sleep is one of the most important healthy habits to develop. Oftentimes families might put off bedtime with the hope that the young child will wake up later the next day. Or naptime is skipped for the same reason. However, this can create sleep deprivation in the young child which leads to mood shifts, irritability, depression and stress. Young children need 12-14 hours of sleep daily to grow healthy and emotionally stable.

Tip: Give your child the gift of emotional stability and develop healthy bedtime and night time routines. Try 2-3 things to prepare your child for sleeping. Reading or having your child’s favorite toy or object, playing a soothing song, singing softly or telling a story can all be part of your bedtime routine. 

Habit #8: Caring for our world

Teaching your little one about the world is a life-long pursuit.  This can begin from an early age by demonstrating how and why we need to take care of our planet. Teaching the importance of recycling and keeping trash away from nature. This shows that we all must share the planet, even the birds and the fish and plants. 

Tip: You can involve your little one by allowing them to place recyclable items in the right bins.

Got any more tips that you would like to share? Let us know below.

About the Author

Alyea Sandovar PhD (looking after Product, Content, Gamification and organizational design) is an expert in gamification and video games research (10 years), has a background in early developmental psychology and organizational design.

Alyea is an aunt of three children in the US and having lived as an expat and digital nomad across 3 different continents she knows the pain of being away from family. 

Join Us at Peekabond

Do you want some help to build a ritual to connect with family members at a distance? Peekabond is a playful mobile app to help global families create memories with young children at a distance. The app helps to engage with children through asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. 

It’s allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build better bonds. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations. To build a ritual with your family at a distance through Peekabond go here to download the app for free. 

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Bouncing Back from Pandemic Meltdowns

Bouncing Back from Pandemic Meltdowns

We held an exciting Webinar  with Trova Health about managing our emotions as parents. 

If the last two years have taught us anything, it’s that the structure and stability in our daily lives can disappear at a moment’s notice. A difficult time for parents, adapting schedules and managing inevitable meltdowns as their child is sent home from day-care for the 4th week in a row. We all have a limit and grown-ups are certainly not exempt from tantrums at times like this. 

Luckily, Springtime, wherever you are, gives us an opportunity to start anew. As the flowers begin to bloom and we celebrate the Spring holidays, let’s think about where we are and how to hit the reset button.

What Causes Meltdowns?

Emotional “dysregulation” is quite common for kids, but we forget it happens with adults. We move into survival mode, counting down minutes until bedtime and think about solutions to chaos rather than finding moments of joy and peace. Meltdowns occur in all humans due to a dysregulation of the nervous system. If we are unaware of what is happening, we stay in paralysis or survival mode until we burn out, blow up or both! 

What Do Meltdowns Look Like?

During our webinar, we heard many great (sometimes funny) examples of pandemic meltdowns. It seems the pandemic was very successful in adding unpredictable layers of stress to existing chaos. Between family members testing positive for covid, to homeschooling, new jobs, remote working and the sheer uncertainty of the pandemic, it’s no wonder we cracked under the pressure. While dealing with some or maybe all the above, it’s common to find yourself raising your voice to your kids. A meltdown can look like shouting or arguing, but also bitterness, resentment and burnout are common traits.  Each parent is different. Identifying what you look like during a meltdown can be the first step to preventing them.

The Medicine

So how do we prevent meltdowns? The answer is simple: give yourself exactly what you are seeking. This is where we dive into what we really want…the deeper desire. If a parent says, “I want a break!” what does that break look like and what will it bring? Peace? Relief? Once we slow this down, what we see is that as parents, we don’t allow ourselves to feel what we want to feel until we have the THING (the goal, the “break.”) Ironically, as we slow down, tune into our own nervous system, feel what’s happening for us, we gift ourselves the exact thing we truly desire! We’ve given ourselves the break. 

For example: If you come home from a long day and see you kids sitting around in a messy room with no chores done, what do you do? Shout? The perfect meltdown. Play back this movie in slow motion and see how neutral this situation is. The kids are sitting on the couch. That’s it. You may experience other thoughts like: “My kids are lazy, and I do everything around here.” Notice how these thoughts make you feel: upset, disrespected, judgemental, etc and see where these thoughts and feelings lead to.

The Inner Work

Doing the “inner work” goes beyond self-care. It’s paying attention to yourself and honouring exactly what you desire and need. In the above scenario, the parent probably desires relaxation or connection. They’re probably hungry and thirsty too! So, let’s practise pressing pause, diving into the deeper desire and give ourselves what we need before reacting. What becomes empowering is noticing that peace and joy are no longer dependent on you finally getting that well deserved break. You don’t have to hold out all day to finally be rewarded. You can listen to the smaller signs and fulfil your needs as they arise, taking back your own power.

Hear Yourself Before Demanding to be Heard

Remember, you discover the desire by noticing your behaviour pattern. If you get upset and yell, your deeper desire is most likely to be heard. If your pattern is withdrawal, your deeper desire could be to ‘relax’ or ‘take a break’. When we honour our needs, the triggers are no longer present.

5 practical things you can do before, during and after a meltdown

Slow Down and Connect with Yourself

Slow down your internal world, paying attention to cues or markers that let you know you are outside of your window of tolerance. You might be too “high”- overwhelmed or too “low”- depleted/ burned out. For now, just focus on allowing and accepting the emotions. 

Honour the Need that Arises 

If you desire a break, take it. If you desire peace, feel it. If you desire joy, take a moment to dance in the kitchen or whatever brings you 30 seconds of joy.

Be OK with Taking a “time out” 

Practice a calming technique such as breathing or visualisation. This goes along with self-care and models for your children and spouse that you are tuned into your own needs and limits. You can call it a “break” or “taking 5” and use that time to sit outside or lay down in your room while kids entertain themselves.

Ask for Support 

This is tough to do if you’re living in a new place with less friends or family around. Some parents have found that asking for support via video calls can help. You can ask family or friends to help out with homework by jumping on a Zoom call. This can also work with reading bedtime stories or any other activities you can participate in remotely. If you’re really stuck for friends and family, check out the local community and see if you can build a support network through schools, kids groups or church. 

Connect with kids/ family

Schedule intentional time to do something novel. Our brains crave novelty and connection! Plan a scavenger hunt, play a new game, give your kids a phone and let them direct their own commercial or movie. You can try new food together or dress up in costumes and go to the park! Camping in the living room is always fun or even ask your kids or spouse to plan something they’d love to do…

Watch the Webinar

Emotional dysregulation is addressed with awareness and self-compassion. Slowing down and becoming present is key in these moments of distress. You can watch the webinar here 

What is one thing you can do in the next 24 hours to find your deeper desire?

About Peekabond

Anieke Lamers, our CEO created Peekabond at the onset of Covid-19. A mobile app to help global families connect with young children remotely. Inspiring families to create playful and engaging moments with young children.

Asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. Allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build memories together. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations. If you would like to try Peekabond click here

About Trova Health

Trova health is a digital health and wellness company created specifically for expats, providing mental health and remote care services worldwide. To find out more go here

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5 Benefits of  Artistic Expression in Preschool

How art helps children develop

Art is a vast tool in early years. It offers the children a way of expressing themselves even before they develop language. Through art they can manifest their inner self, express their feelings and at the same time, they learn about the world around them. It also helps them develop their creativity and expand their knowledge.  

Creativity is a dynamic process which involves the ability to combine previously learned concepts and/or experiences to create new things. Subsequently, creating new pathways in their brain.   

Young children learn through their senses and art is the perfect way for preschoolers to learn and begin to master many skills. 

Art promotes the development of many abilities and connects several areas of development. It fosters not only cognitive and intellectual development but also physical and emotional. All these are part of the creative process which links memory and imagination. 

Benefits of artistic expression in preschool

Artistic expression in preschool will help in the overall development of children in a positive way. The development and stimulation of creativity may be one of the most important benefits of artistic expression in preschool, as an avid creative imagination will give them tools for problem solving in everyday life. Art helps develop abstract thinking which in turn develops problem solving too. 

Here are some examples of how expressive art influences in a positive way the development of the whole child:

Physical: they develop fine and gross motor skills which help them improve their coordination.

Emotional: it gives them a way of expressing their feelings and experiences.

Communicative: they express their inner self and develop language skills.

Aesthetics: they begin to understand and discover the beauty of their environment and develop sensitivity. 

Moral and social: they learn to take care of the materials they use, to respect others’ work, ideas, and points of view. They also learn to accept criticism and being part of a group.

Creative: they have access to a variety of materials and different art techniques and are encouraged to experiment with them.

Benefits of incorporating nature in art projects in preschool

To talk about preschool is to talk about art, since most of the activities and teaching methods at this stage make use of artistic expression. Using nature in art projects help young children learn about their environment. Using materials like sticks, stones, leaves, shells, sand, soil, water, seeds, flowers, and feathers will help them learn about textures, colors, smells, patterns, and shapes. 

By using these materials, they begin to make connections that help them understand where these materials come from and therefore, learn about the world around them. When they learn about the seasons and the weather for example, they are learning about growth, cycles, and change. They can relate to nature as they see it happening around them. 

When children explore and play with natural materials all their senses are at work. They can feel if materials are soft, smooth, rough, or spiky. When they manipulate them, they instinctively begin to sort them, line them up, make shapes, count them, or stack them. All these activities are an important base for subsequent mathematical thinking. 

Having access to raw materials will make them conscious about their environment and will make them develop appreciation of nature and the importance of caring for it.

Artistic expression in preschool is a fundamental component of education, as it helps children develop their abilities for subsequent learning.  It provides them with an opportunity to develop empathy, self-esteem, and confidence too.

So next time you go out with your child, collect some natural materials while you walk and take them home and invite your little one to manipulate and play with them. Maybe even create some beautiful artwork together. Now you know the many benefits in doing so.

Build your own bird nest activity:

What do you need: 

  • Kapla blocks
  • Shredded pape
  • (Easter) egg

It seems simple, but did you know that during this activity we can cover most of the early stages development goals? Understanding of the world starts with the knowledge that birds build nests and that they can be built out of different materials. Expressive Arts & Design – children can express their artistic need and make their own design of a nest. They can decide on the size of the nest and its shape and need to find a way to put the blocks together that covers logical thinking and problem solving development. Physical development is very important as well. Manipulating blocks and paper with their hands and fingers, children are exercising their fine motor skills, not to mention working with different materials is a great sensory experience. While sitting together at the workstations children communicate and learn from one another, often they decide to build a bigger nest together and that enriches their personal and social development.

You can easily try to do this at home!

About Sanne

Sanne was born in Tokyo (Japan), grew up in the Netherlands and is now living in The Hague where she works as marketing and communication specialist for international childcare organisation Big Ben Kids.

Big Ben Kids offers high quality childcare to international parents and internationally minded Dutch families offering daycare, after school care and holiday camps at our locations in Scheveningen, Wassenaar and Amstelveen. Big Ben Kids is growing to establish itself as one of the leading international childcare providers in the Netherlands.

They want to achieve this growth through offering constant high quality of customer service, communication and childcare services. At Big Ben Kids they know how important it is for children to have a sense of community and familiarity. That’s why they offer children a safe environment and a home from home in an international setting where there is tolerance a chance to meet people who are like minded, yet also very different. Big Ben Kids is proud to say that their childcare centres are a melting pot of cultures where magical friendships can develop between people from all over the world. Big Ben Kids supports children in recognizing and developing their talents as well as their future potential. At Big Ben Kids, the parents are closely involved in their children’s adventures.

For more information: https://bigbenkids.com/ or directly book a tour at one of our beautiful locations: https://bigbenkids.com/book-a-tour/

Join Us at Peekabond

Anieke Lamers, our CEO created Peekabond at the onset of Covid-19. A mobile app to help global families bond with young children remotely. Inspiring families to create playful and engaging moments with young children.

Asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. Allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build better bonds. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations. If you would like to try Peekabond click here

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11 Fun and Useful Apps for Expat Families in 2022

11 Fun and Useful Apps for Families in 2022 by Vincent van de Noord

Do you ever feel like your family is missing out on the life of your child? I know I do. When I was young, I saw my grandparents often because they lived very close by. Naturally, we developed a very strong and loving bond.

Nowadays, my family is living further apart. My son can’t hop on his bike to see his grandparents, so we need other ways to stay in touch. Luckily, almost everything can be done virtually these days. We’re still waiting for technology but kisses and hugs, but my son is saving them up for the moments my family is together in real life.

Finding the right apps can be a chore. We know because we sorted through many of them. To help you, we’ve made a list of 11 apps that you could use. Some are free, but most are freemium (you can try it out, but have to pay to take full advantage of the app).

Each of these apps offers something different and can help you build a virtual connection with your family. So that when you are together in real life, it will be as if you were never apart.

We’ve sorted them into categories. Let’s dive in!

The best video calling apps

For live video calls, these are great options.

FaceTime (free)

Apple’s video calling platform is great for live interaction with your family. You can use it on an iPad for an extra-large screen, and it offers funny animal filters that you can play around with.

It’s only available on Apple devices. You do have the challenge of finding the right time, and depending on the creativity of your family members it will be a conversation with the child or just the adults talking.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/facetime/id1110145091

Zoom (freemium)

Zoom really took off during COVID. It works very well as a tool for video calls, but it’s built for business communication, so there is no playfulness unless you bring it yourself. The free option is limited to 40 minutes.

https://zoom.us

Alternative:

You can also use Google Meet, which is free to use.

The best messenger apps

If you want to send messages, these are the right apps for you.

Marco Polo (freemium)

Marco Polo is a great option if you want to have video chats with your family. It works by sending short videos back and forth, which makes it more suited to use for young children. It’s designed for close relationships and is relatively easy to use.

What it doesn’t offer is content or activities to get the conversation going. As a parent, you often still have to initiate the contact.

https://www.marcopolo.me/wellbeing/

WhatsApp (free)

I don’t think this one needs an introduction. With approximately 2 billion (!) users, WhatsApp is the most popular mobile messenger app worldwide. It’s great to share messages, videos, and photos. You can also create a group for your family.

The downside is that it’s a very generic messenger built for adults, and your videos and photos are easily lost in your message history. And let’s not forget it’s owned by Meta (formally Facebook), a company that isn’t well known for its privacy standards.

https://www.whatsapp.com

Signal (free)

Signal is privacy friendly alternative to WhatsApp. It offers similar functionality, but its focus on security and privacy can make it a better choice for users concerned about their data (and of course, that should be everyone!).

https://signal.org

Best photo & video sharing apps

If you primarily want to share photos and videos, these apps could be great for you.

Google Photos (freemium)

This is a popular platform where you can store and organize all your photos and videos and share them with your family. You get some free storage, if you need more you have to buy an additional subscription.

Google Photos offers a great photo-sharing platform. However, for some people (myself included), sharing private photos of my child with Google feels uncomfortable.

https://www.google.com/photos/about/

Tiny Beans (freemium)

Tiny Beans is a platform with lots of content for parents. They also offer an app that allows you to share photos of your child with your family and track their milestones.

It offers great ideas for parents, but they don’t facilitate two-way interaction between loved ones and a child. It’s perfect for keeping your family in the loop but less suited to building a relationship with loved ones.

https://tinybeans.com

Best family games

This is our favorite category. It’s not just sharing videos and messages, but really playing together. Being playful is important for a child’s development, and its also a lot of fun!

Together (freemium)

This is a family video chat focused on grandparents and grandchildren that lets you play little games and read books together in a video call. It offers games like chess, checkers, and memory. You can have 3 free calls, after that you will have to buy a subscription.

https://www.togethervideoapp.com

OK Play (freemium)

This is a bit of an odd one out because it’s not about connecting with loved ones remotely, but about playing games when you’re together. But because it’s also about creating a connection, I wanted to point this out as well. As a parent, definitely give it a try and play together with your child.

https://okplay.co

Caribu (freemium)

Caribu lets you do fun activities together in a video call. For instance, you can read a book or create a drawing together. You can start for free, but to make the most use of the app you will need a subscription.

It can make video calls more engaging and playful, but you still have to find the right time. As a parent myself, I know that can be a challenge!

https://caribu.com

Peekabond (freemium)

Peekabond is a family app that combines the best of video messaging, photo & video sharing, and family games. It’s built with children in mind and designed to be easy to use for all ages. You can share videos or play little games with loved ones. It helps grandparents and grandchildren to build a deeper relationship, with activities that grow with the age of the child.

Download Peekabond

A final word

I am a proud father and co founder of Peekabond. All the apps we’ve mentioned here could help your family to feel closer. Building a meaningful relationship always requires effort. I’ve found that many families really WANT to have a closer connection, but it’s hard to maintain in the daily hustle of life.

This is the challenge that we want to solve with Peekabond. Create a virtual place where you can be together as a family, without adding more work on your plate as a parent.

I invite you to try Peekabond, hope to see you there soon.

About Vincent

Vincent is a father and co-founder of Peekabond, living in the Netherlands. He loves designing beautiful products and wants to use his skills to make (at least) 20 million people smile. When he’s not working on Peekabond, you can find him doing outdoor activities or spending quality time with his family. You can find more about Vincent here

Join Us at Peekabond

Anieke Lamers, our CEO created Peekabond at the onset of Covid-19. A mobile app to help global families bond with young children remotely. Inspiring families to create playful and engaging moments with young children.

Asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. Allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build better bonds. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations. If you would like to try Peekabond click here

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5 Nature Selfie Tips Every Grandparent Should Master

Taking a Selfie in Nature to Share with Young Children

Hopefully, we all get the opportunity to experience the wonders of nature. Many of us, for the first time when we are small children. If we are lucky enough, there are trees to climb, puddles to jump in, sun and rain to feel on our skin, and rainbows to see in the sky. Watching children have their first experiences with nature can be a very special moment to take part in. That is why we want to share how to take a selfie in Nature and share that with your child at a distance. 

How Nature Benefits Young Children

Nature is diverse and beautiful, but also sometimes a bit gross or weird! Having access to nature and witnessing life and growth can be a very stimulating place for young people to be. Encouraging adventure and exploration, discovering new things, and seeing what life has to offer.

For many, nature is a place free from social judgments. Nature does not have an opinion on what you look like or how many friends you have or how smart you are at school. Nature is an even playing ground for all. Nature reminds us that there is so much more to life and the world is much much bigger than any of the problems we are experiencing. Even if your little one is too small to understand this concept, the sense of freedom that nature brings is there to be enjoyed.

5 Steps to Taking a Good Selfie in Nature

Ok so here we are, on a beautiful day out (or maybe it isn’t so beautiful because, hey, nature!) with our little ones and we want to capture some long-term memories. A selfie is a great, easy way to capture a quick photo and immortalize the moment.

If you feel like you need a recap on your selfie-taking skills, check out our article with all the instructions HERE.

  1. A Good Background

First things first – find a beautiful backdrop. Something to stand in front of for your picture. It doesn’t have to be the main feature of your adventure, just something you think would be nice as a background. Let your instincts guide you. Maybe you’re surrounded by wonderful scenery or maybe you spot something charming or funny that you’d like to remember. Don’t get too obsessed with it though, the more people you have in your selfie, the less you will be able to see the backdrop.

  1. Equipment Ready!

Once you’ve found a good spot, let everyone know you’d like to take a quick selfie. As they gather themselves for your photo, you can take the opportunity to open the camera app on your phone. Switch the view to the front-facing camera and decide if you want the flash on or off. Your smartphone will probably have settings automatically set up so there should be very little to prepare.

  1. Get your face and the view!

Once you’ve found a good spot, make sure your face is shown clearly, squeeze in really tight with the object you wish to show. Hold your phone out as far as you can with the front-facing camera on. Hold the phone at eye level to capture your face well (children love faces!). It helps if you are at the front of the photo so you can extend your arm as far as possible, giving you more space to get everyone in.

  1. Make some Adjustments

The good thing about a selfie is that everyone in the photo can see themselves. If the picture doesn’t look good at this stage – maybe it’s too dark or there is something obscuring the photo, now is the time to fix that. You can always send it as is and take the opportunity to have a conversation with your little one at a distance. Ask your little ones ‘Do you think that looks good?’  

  1. Take the Photo

Once you are ready, you can click the button to take the photo. Usually, it’s the big round one at the bottom of the screen. Make sure both your face and the object you are trying to show are in there with your best smile. Take a few! It’s nice to have some options. You can look at them there and then with your little ones or maybe save them for later. If you don’t like the photo, feel free to take another one.

Extra Tips

Here are some other ideas we love to make things even more fun:

 Include Nature

Wherever you are, maybe you can do something fun with your surroundings. Kids tend to pick all sorts of props when they are out in nature so it might be fun for you to do the same and to include these in the photo.

  • You can have sticks for bunny ears or stand in front of a nice tree to give you all angel wings.
  • If it’s dry, maybe grab a handful of leaves and try to take a photo while they float back down to the ground.

Ok, these selfies might be a little hit or miss, you could end up with a great action shot or an absolute mess, but it’s the memories that count!

 A Special Setup

As you don’t see these special people very often and you want to create a special photo that you take every time you’re together. Stand in a circle with your feet together and take a photo of everyone’s shoes. If it’s dry, lie down on the grass with your heads together and take a photo of your faces by stretching your arms out above you. Any assembly you can think of works, the trick is to make sure you take it in exactly the same way, every time you see them. This is a wonderful way to collect memories and watch how much everyone grows over time. 

Alternatively, if you will not see your little one for a long time, take a picture of your shoes or your face in the grass and ask your little one to take one too and send it back!

 Use the Timer!

Did you know that most smartphone cameras have a timer function? There should be a button or icon on your phone screen that looks like an oven timer. When you click this, it should ask you how many seconds you would like to wait before the photo is taken automatically. This is a great trick when needing to set up with props or action shots. You can set the smartphone up on a tree or a rock somewhere and have everyone get into the photo. I once used a can of beans to prop my phone to get a shot of me in the pool!

Click the button you would normally click to take the photo and the timer feature will get started. You should see the countdown on your phone screen. This saves you the bother of clicking the button yourself and you and the little ones can have more time to do whatever it is you want to do for the photo!

To Conclude - The Selfie is Your Friend

You do not need to fear or dislike the selfie. It might be strange or weird at first but that’s okay. If It can take some time to get your head around but remember, it’s a tool. Taking selfies is a great tool for capturing moments and creating memories that you can look back on forever. Don’t worry if you’re a little stiff at first, you’ll soon get the hang of it. It’s all about creating memories that your little ones will have the privilege of looking back on when they are big and all grown up.

About Alex Meade

Alex Meade is a freelance writer, living in Portugal. Originally from England, she likes to spend her days in the water, improving her surfing skills or learning to wing foil. When she’s not writing or surfing, she teaches yoga near the local beach. You can reach Alex by going to here

About Peekabond

Anieke Lamers, our CEO created Peekabond at the onset of Covid-19. A mobile app to help global families bond with young children remotely. Inspiring families to create playful and engaging moments with young children.

Asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. Allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build better bonds. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations. If you would like to try Peekabond click here

Read More

5 Selfie Tips for Grandparents

5 Selfie tips that will change your relationship with your grandchildren

Well, here we are, fully immersed in this ‘selfie’ era. Can you remember a time before selfies? It seems not so long after the smartphone was introduced, with its clever front-facing camera, the selfie was invented. Before this, our self-portraits had more of a ‘point and click’ approach to them. It’s funny to think of now. There was a time in which taking photos of yourself was considered strange, vain or conceited. While many of the younger generations have embraced the success of the selfie, there are a few among us still bewildered by the concept, and that’s ok. It can feel awkward at first, but we’re here to show you how to make it easy. 

How Selfies can Help you Bond with Your Child at a Distance

Within their first year, babies learn to gather information from faces to determine identity, personal characteristics, and emotions. These associations help to shape their relationships with the face in question. Subconsciously, their brain receives information from somebody’s face and thinks ‘that’s Grandad, that’s Grandad’s smile, that’s his nose, that’s the noise he makes when he laughs’. We also learn social cues at this age, building our social skills to understand how other people are feeling. 

Becoming familiar with your face helps build the bond between you and your little one. They’ll start to read your facial expressions and understand your emotions. Having a clear picture of you helps to build memories and associations. If you can’t be there in person, a photo of you is the next best thing to build lasting relationships.

How Do You Take a Selfie?

Ok, let’s be brave. You can do it!

  1. Open the camera app on your smartphone:  On most devices, you’ll see a little symbol, shaped like a camera with two arrows inside. This button switches your camera to face you, rather than facing away from you. Check out the image below, the button you’re looking for is circled but it might be in a different place on your phone. Now you should be able to see your lovely face on screen!

2. Angle your phone: Don’t worry, the front facing camera takes a bit of getting used to. To start with, you might not see the most flattering angle of your face! Its ok, you can readjust the phone position to find a better view. Hold the phone out at arm’s length directly in front of you. Keep your face in the middle of the screen with your eyes at eye level. Now you can try tilting your head to the side or tilting the phone to get a nice picture. It’s best to hold the phone quite far from your face unless you’re looking for a close-up!

3. Take the photo: Make a big smile and click the same button you would do if you were taking a normal photo. It’s usually a big round button at the bottom of the screen. On some phones, you can even use the volume button on the side to take a photo more easily. 

4. Retake the photo: If you’re not happy with your first attempt, take another. You don’t have to love the photo but it’s important to feel accurately represented. The more photos you take, the more comfortable you’ll feel with the concept. Most selfie-takers will tell you that sometimes it can take 50 attempts before settling on the right photo! So don’t worry if you take a lot of pictures. You can easily delete them from your camera roll after by selecting the button that looks like a trash bin. 

5. Send the photo: It’s got to go somewhere right! Make sure you send it to your loved one. If you take the photo using the camera app on your phone, it should save to your camera roll. Then you can click on the app you are using to communicate with your loved ones. This can be any social media app, maybe Facebook messenger or WhatsApp. Select the person you would like to send the photo to – you probably already have a conversation on the go with them. Every app is slightly different but generally, there should be an icon that looks like a picture/landscape. This indicates your stored pictures. Selecting this option should show you your camera roll where you have saved your selfie. Select this picture and hit send.

Some Do’s and Don’ts!

 
Lighting

The best way to take a good, quick selfie is to find some good lighting. Lighting makes so much difference to a photo. Stand somewhere there is natural light, shining from the side – not directly above your head. 

Flash vs No Flash

Usually,  the flash function on your camera will wash out your face and make your eyes go red like a demon. Not always though. Click the little lightning bolt option on your phone screen to experiment having the flash on or off. 

No Photoshop

In this crazy world of selfies we now live in, there are apps you can use to edit your appearance. Take it from us, you don’t need to do that. Your beautiful face does not need editing and your little ones will love you, just as you are. Teach them confidence and self-care by proudly presenting your realistic photo. 

The Benefits of Sharing your Selfie with your Loved One

Studies show that babies and young children LOVE faces. It’s one of the first things they start to connect with when they are born. Maybe you’ve experienced this yourself, making silly faces to babies to get them to laugh. This isn’t just entertainment, this is a learning exercise for the little one. Faces are integral to the first few stages of their development. As they grow, their language skills develop. Focus is drawn towards the mouth as they begin learning words and relating these words to meaning. 

To Conclude

It might be scary at first, it might feel weird or just too difficult, but we promise, you’ll get the hang of it. You’ll be sending selfies without a second thought and your little one will be delighted. 

About Alex Meade

Alex Meade is a freelance writer, living in Portugal. Originally from England, she likes to spend her days in the water, improving her surfing skills or learning to wing foil. When she’s not writing or surfing, she teaches yoga near the local beach. You can find more about alex here

About Peekabond

Anieke Lamers, our CEO created Peekabond at the onset of Covid-19. A mobile app to help global families bond with young children remotely. Inspiring families to create playful and engaging moments with young children.

Asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. Allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build better bonds. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations. If you would like to try Peekabond click here

Read More

8 Benefits of Storytelling for Young Children by Alyea Sandovar

Why is Storytelling Important for Young Children?

Storytelling is an important piece of child development. Used consistently throughout schooling and education, storytelling helps to engage children and open their minds to all manner of possibilities. As well as encouraging creative thoughts, storytelling can be used as a vehicle for teaching values. 

With a strong presence throughout history, there is evidence that every culture we know tells stories. They shape our identity, bond communities, teach lessons and help us remember things that should never be forgotten. Before children can read or write, they are told stories. 

Bonds are formed between storytellers and their audiences. Sitting down with your little one to read them a story can create long lasting memories for both of you. The stories grow more complex as your little one develops, expanding on their understanding of the world and human emotion.

The Benefits of Storytelling for Young Children

1. Improves communication and listening skills

Storytelling teaches children to listen. After all, in order to hear the story, you need to be quiet! Childrenabsorb language, the more words they hear, the more vocabulary they have to express themselves. Storytelling is a great way to expand on vocab.

2. Improves social skills

Hearing a story can be a sociable experience. Children often hear stories in a classroom setting, which teaches them social skills along with their peers. Characters within stories also demonstrate social behaviors which help to teach children about social ques and manners. 

3. Teaches values 

Children can learn important life values from storytelling. Many lessons are hidden within well told stories, to demonstrate right from wrong to children at an early age. 

4. Memory skills

The part of your brain used to remember things can be strengthened through storytelling. Children learn how to retain information from their favorite stories. 

5. Educational strategy

Keeping children engaged for prolonged periods of time can be a challenge, especially when you are trying to teach them something. Stories can be used to keep children focused enough to teach them complex topics.

6. Encourages creativity

Magic can happen during storytime. Storytelling can ignite the imagination of a child and allow them to create things that were previously impossible. 

7. Helps to bond with the storyteller

Telling stories can be a bonding experience for the child and storyteller. Children often remember having stories read to them by relatives. 

8. Helps to unite children within a community

A shared experience like being told a story can help to unite a group of children. At that moment they are following the same journey and learning the same things.

To Conclude

Stories are an easy way to nurture the development of your child or loved one. When reading stories you can relax in the knowledge that you are contributing to their education and their social skills as well as creating a loving, bonding experience. 

About Peekabond

Anieke Lamers, our CEO created Peekabond at the onset of Covid-19. A mobile app to help global families bond with young children remotely. Inspiring families to create playful and engaging moments with young children.

Asynchronous video connection and inspirational science-based content suggestions. Allowing families and loved ones to share small moments and build better bonds. Every play experience is designed with care and approved by child development experts. Always age appropriate. Always private and secure, never showing ads. Our intention is to build a movement that connects families across borders and over generations.  If you would like to try Peekabond here 

Read More