I promise, I’ve tried to teach my kids about kitchen safety, but it doesn’t work. They don’t listen to me; they just look at me like I’m speaking a foreign language. I love spending time in the kitchen with the kids but I’m not about to let them get hurt, and that’s what would happen if I let them join me as often as they wanted. They love to cook with me but are not willing to do what it takes to make sure everyone stays safe in the kitchen. As crazy as that sounds to us, it apparently makes perfect sense to them, and it’s probably my fault too. Oh, who knows I’m probably making everything up about the food being hot when it comes out of the oven or the burner on the stove for that matter, lol. Darn kids, I l love them, but there are days they make me want to bang my head on the wall.
Since kitchen safety is so important, especially when children are joining you in the kitchen I thought I would share a few things that didn’t teach my kids about kitchen safety at all. Your kids might be different; I sure hope they understand the reason we promote kitchen safety better than my girls. It’s okay; my girls are coming around.
I Thought My Kids Sucked At Kitchen Safety, Until Dumb Ways JR Made Me Realize I Was Being a Fun Cop!
Unfortunately, I am not responsible for teaching them kitchen safety.  Up until recently I thought my kids just sucked at kitchen safety.  Come to find out they only suck at listening to me tell them about kitchen safety, lol. I guess I need to turn up the fun factor right, I probably too monotone and serious because it’s a serious conversation and the thought of my kids getting hurt isn’t something I take lightly but I need to remember just how fun it is to hang out with a fun cop, lol.  I swear that is what I feel like now.  At the time I thought I was being safe, which I was but you can have fun, be safe and likely get a more engaging response from the kids.
I can honestly say I don’t want to hang out with a fun cop.  I think it’s safe to say, it’s not personal, they wouldn’t like hanging out with Boffo either if he acted like a fun cop.  Who would have thought Dumb Ways JR would help me see where I was going wrong trying to teach my kids kitchen safety.  Thanks, Dumb Ways JR.  Oh, I’ll explain in a bit first let me tell you everything I have tried to do to teach the girls kitchen safety and failed miserably at.
- Don’t stand in front of the oven, especially when mom has something hot in her hand and is making a beeline in your direction.
- Just because you can’t see over the counter yet doesn’t mean it’s okay for you to just put your hand up there. Seriously, the stove isn’t hot it’s not going to burn you or anything.
- OMG, get your finger out of the bowl! Don’t you know you need to wash your hands BEFORE we start cooking? I know I asked you and your sister to please wash your hands. I guess I should have done it in English since they think I speak another language.
- Oh and forget to explain to them what happens if a fire starts, they won’t understand me.
- Oh, or why it’s NOT COOL to put your finger in the electric stand mixer while it’s on high when mom isn’t looking. Seriously, you could lose a finger. A tiny bit of cake mix isn’t worth it. Plus, if you wait for 0 minutes I’ll let you guys have what’ left in the bowl.
- You can’t just reach into the pan and grab a noodle, there is hot water in there. Â Gosh, these kids!
- OMG, I was talking to you and you are just going to ignore me and set up a restaurant on the kitchen floor. Â Seriously, when does it end?
- Oh, lookie now she invited the dogs, IN THE KITCHEN why she takes their order. Â I’m going to have to assume that I’m the one whos’ cooking it because they are not allowed to touch anything until they understand kitchen safety a tad bit better. Â Now get the dogs out of here. Â Wait, that’s my blanket! Â Seriously, you are going to give the whole foreign language look again?
- Oh, and why is reading the recipe to me not fun? I have to.  It’s part of learning how to cook AND a sneaky way to get some summer reading in. Yup, they don’t fall for that one.
Okay, I’m just going to stop there because it’s all I can take for today. I seriously had to look out the window to make sure it wasn’t snowing, feel their foreheads make sure they were not sick or abducted by aliens. To my surprise, they were not abducted by aliens they were trying to be safe in the kitchen all thanks to the Dumb Ways JR Boffo’s Breakfast app that I sarcastically told them to learn about kitchen safety with.  In my defense, I was frustrated because they wouldn’t listen and were arguing with one another nonstop and I had my fill.  Okay, and my feelings were a tad bit hurt because I felt like they didn’t want to hang out with me, which they didn’t and looking back I don’t blame them.  I made something we all enjoy, not fun.  Lucky for me Boffo is one smart character and reminded all of us just how fun cooking should be, especially when we are doing it together.
Dumb Ways JR Boffo’s Breakfast
Well, little did they know that I was playing the Dumb Ways JR Boffo’s Breakfast app and Dumb Ways JR right under their noses for two days, lol. I played it for a few days before telling the girls about it because it’s fun, educational, and I needed to spend some time playing it before I could turn them loose. I know, I’m such a good mom for thinking of their safety first. Oh, don’t act like you’ve never had fun playing one of your kid’s apps, so you didn’t tell them about it until you were finished, so you didn’t have to share with them. I know that sounds horrible, but I share everything, and I don’t remember the last time I went to the bathroom alone. See, I can’t even sneak off to the bathroom to play an app on a piece, I have to do it in the front of them while they are bickering with one another, or they will notice. I swear, the moment I try to do something sneaky they find me every single time, so I don’t’ even try anymore, I just play right in front of them, and they never think twice lol.
The app is excellent; I had so much fun playing I skipped out on going to the grocery store lol. Yup, nobody, knows so let’s just keep that between us.
Why is Dumb Ways JR Boffo’s Breakfast so much fun? Well, first off Boffo is a super cute character, I love his hair, and we have a lot in common – we like to cook, eat, and Boffo listens to me when I tell him something isn’t safe. So basically you play Boffo and help him cook different things. You can spend a little extra time helping him do things right, or you can add in some of those sloppy ingredients and just start mixing away.
Oh, man you can make some wicked combinations, but you have e to be careful because Boffo won’t eat everything. He’s pretty impressive, not only can Boffo eat a lot but when he can make some pretty awesome faces depending on what you’re trying to feed him.
At least we know Boffo won’t get sick of eating the same thing over and over because there is plenty of food combinations to come up with someone different, messy, and oh-so-fun.
Plus, it helps to teach children bout kitchen safety! One of my favorite things about the app is that it helped Mattie understand that the stove is hot. Yes, I have told her a million times, and it didn’t work. I think she needed to see that it was hot. Had a picked her up to show her that the top was glowing read I might have had different results, and it’s a lot more fun that way too. Yea, so maybe I’m learning a little about teaching my kids to cook from Boffo too. He sure is a rock star because not only did we talk about the hot stove but knives too and my kids listened to me.
The Dumb Ways JR Boffo’s Breakfast app helps to engage children in a fun way where they can use their imagination and creativity. There are not rules or time limits it Boffo’s Kitchen and kids can explore stages of food perpetration, witness surprise reactions, humorous animations and sound effects, and more.  We had a little content last night to see who could cook Boffo the grossest meal and my youngest daughter won every single time. I think she was cheating, but I don’t have proof, but if she is, I’ll find out!
Dumb Ways JR Loop’s Train Set
Dumb Ways JR Loopy’s Train Set is yet another fabulous app from Dum Ways JR! On Dumb Ways JR Loop’s Train Set players get to create a ruckus in different places like kitchens, trains, and planes to name a few. Loopy can also pick up his buds while he’s on his train trip. Oh and he can also build his track when the app is played in Drive mode.
There are two modes on the Dumb Ways JR Loopy’s Train Set app – Drive (contains premade tracks to drive on) and Build (allows the player to build a track using different track pieces) and three level of play in each mode. Players can also add things to each scene and discover an awesome surprise. Another app from Dumb Ways JR that engages children by supporting children’s pretends play and storytelling. You can defiantly see the time and energy that went into designing this app, so it fosters a child’s sense of creativity and of course fun.
The Dumb Ways JR Loopy’s Train Set app is excellent; even my husband played it for a while the other night. Of course, the girls were complaining because they wanted to play but see dad is lucky he can take off into the bathroom for half an hour and play in the piece in quite. Everyone leaves him alone, lucky guy he got in some good playtime on the Dumb Ways JR Loopy’s Train Set app. Dumb Ways JR Loopy’s Train Set is geared for children 3 to 7 years of age, but it’s perfect for engaging children of all ages, lol.
How and Why Dumb Ways JR Came To Be What It Is Today
You remember Dumb Ways to Die right? Well in 2012 they were encouraging safe behavior around training, level crossings, and train stations and delivering it to their audience in a way they found it entertaining. Dumb Ways To Die did an excellent job in sharing their message – it’s dumb to take risks that can have serious outcomes – especially with trains. However, if you have ever seen Dumb Ways To Die I’m sure you would agree it’s not age appropriate for our children, a bit too gory.
Since learned behaviors start at such a young age, the one and only Dumb Ways JR was born to send safety messages in not only an education but age appropriate way. Â Nothing gory, just four key eliminates that have helped to guide Dumb Ways JR with are:
- Child Centered Design
- Multi-Sensory and Multi-modal elements
- Challenge
- Humor
Dumb Ways JR does a fabulous job introducing safety messages to kids in a fun, educational, and age-appropriate way for kids. Everything is entertaining and shows kids that are’ dumb to take certain risks because they have had serious consequences, especially when you’re around trains
You can download Dumb Ways JR Boffo’s Breakfast app in the iTunes Store and Google Play Store, and you can download DumbWays JR Loopy’s Train Set in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
You can also stay up to date with everything at Dumb Ways JR by following them the Dumb Ways JR Facebook Page, Instagram Page, Dumb Ways JR website, and of course the Dumb Ways To Die website and Facebook Page.
