March 2011 Archives

One day Kellan asked to listen to one of his favorite songs, "Martha My Dear," by The Beatles. When the next song on the album came on Kellan said, "He's going to sing pickle pie." Lately Kellan has been singing the words "pickle pie" and we figured it was just something silly he liked to say. Kind of like his own nonsensical anthem. Then I found out where it came from. 

The song "I'm So Tired" has a line "I'd give you everything I've got for a little piece of mind." Except to Kellan John Lennon is singing "for a pickle pie." I think I laughed for five minutes straight.

It was a reminder to me as a parent that kids are paying attention whether you realize it or not. They may not get all the details correct, but they are definitely absorbing everything. I will be sure to keep some of my favorite Cee-Lo song off my Kellan playlist!

Does your preschooler have a favorite song?

If there's one chore I try to avoid above all others, it's grocery shopping with my son. Without fail, Kellan and I battle over something he wants that I don't want to buy him. I try to shop when he's at school, but it's not always possible. Lately he asks to buy things during every shopping trip, which makes me one cranky mama.

The worst section is the registers, which are literally lined with eye candy - gum, chocolate, and a rainbow array of candies. He's even begged me to buy a lip balm because it was there!

Please tell me I'm not alone! Do you have advice on how to keep the peace during our shopping trips? 

Does this happen to you? You're walking in your living room, when all of a sudden your foot rolls from under you because you stepped on a wayward crayon? This happens to me often. Kellan likes to use crayons to make parking lots for his cars, so we constantly have crayons underfoot. 

Many of our crayons are broken and naked. Kellan likes to peel the paper off, leaving me to wonder if a tiny stick is burnt orange or chestnut. Have I mentioned I'm a huge nerd? 

When I learned our crayon nubs could be recycled to make cool new crayons, I was definitely enthused. There is more than one way to do this, including melting the crayons inside a glass jar in hot water like you would melt chocolate, but I like another method better.

First heat your oven to 200°.  Carefully cut up your crayons into small pieces. Place them inside a non-stick cupcake pan. You can get really creative with the color combinations. Bake for about 20 minutes, making sure to check the progress of your melted crayons. Take out the pan and let the crayons cool completely. Pop out the discs and enjoy! This is a fun recycling project and a great way to give new life to old crayons.

I love Tina Fey. That woman could stand around wiggling her eyebrows and I would laugh like a giddy three year-old after three popsicles. So even though her movie Date Night with comedian Steve Carell was a mixed bag, I still have a soft spot for it because of the premise.

Erik and I have a list of restaurants we want to check out on our date nights. We are both foodies and we love trying new restaurants, but we haven't made our date nights a priority lately. Or if we do go out, we go to one of our reliable places that doesn't require too much planning or dressing up. I used to love dressing up! What happened? 

Part of the problem is that we've been busy. Another factor is that we've just been lazy - too lazy to get a babysitter, too lazy to plan a fun night out, too lazy to make our time with each other a priority. When we were actually dating, we lived in different cities so dates were a big deal. We put thought and planning behind them, but we also just enjoyed each other's company. 

Another factor that puts a damper on date nights is that our roles as parents take top billing over anything else. That's understandable when you have an infant, but once your child is older, you have to recommit yourselves to "couple time." I had a conversation once with a mom who said when she and her husband go out, they agree not to talk about the kids. At the time it seemed weird, but now I get it. 

Erik and I have agreed to make this the year of date night. How do you find ways to connect with your partner?

Now that we have an extra hour of sunlight, I'm more than ready for spring. To get into the spirit of the season, I'm looking forward to making green milkshakes in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Any excuse for ice cream, right?

I had heard about McDonald's Shamrock shakes but I had no idea it had such a cult following. Being a proud do-it-yourself kind of gal, I have concocted my own version at home. Kellan can barely contain himself when I take out the blender. It usually means smoothies or milk shakes and that's very good reason to get excited!

I personally like using Haagen Daz mint ice cream and 2% milk for my homemade shakes. The ice cream isn't green, but it's easily fixed with a couple of drops of food dye. Another twist on the Shamrock shake is to use pistachio gelato. It is really tasty with little bits of shaved chocolate on top.

If you really want something closer to the original, you can blend your favorite vanilla ice cream, milk, green food coloring, and mint extract. It's a fun activity with your kids and the results are delicious.  Be sure to check out this delicious Lucky Smoothie recipe as well.

All kids suffer bumps and bruises to the head from time to time, but it can be really scary when your child is injured from a fall or another accident. Last week, Kellan was digging through a toy chest at his cousins' house when the lid fell on his head. I left the room for no more than a few seconds when I heard a thump and ran back.

Kellan cried and developed a good-sized lump on the top of his head, but he recovered enough to play again after about half an hour. Maybe it's because of all the talk about head injuries since star NHL player Sidney Crosby got sidelined by a concussion, but I watched Kellan closely the rest of the day. I kept asking if he had a headache (he didn't) and he asked me to hold him more than usual (I did).

You don't ever want to take a head injury lightly, but you can watch for certain symptoms so you can put your mind at ease. If your child has a deep cut to his head, loses consciousness for a short time, starts vomiting or cannot be comforted, you want to seek medical attention right away. If your child seems to have recovered, watch for changes in behavior, complaints of head or neck pain, irritability or loss of coordination.  If your gut tells you something isn't right, call your doctor.  Also, have your child take it easy for the rest of the day. Reading books or watching a low-key video should help keep things mellow. 

This was an important lesson for me. I assumed the toy chest lid would stay open without actually checking to see if it locked in place. As babies learn to crawl and then walk, we do safety checks to make sure our little explorers won't pull furnishings down on top of them, but it wouldn't hurt to look around your house to uncover any hidden hazards. 

What hidden hazards were you surprised to find as your child became mobile?

Parents know how important it is for children to read and be read to, but I found I wasn't setting aside enough reading time for myself. So this year I made reading a priority and I'm happier for it. In fact, I have had to force myself to stop reading some nights so I don't wake up sleep deprived the next day.

I just finished Kazuo Ishigura's Never Let Me Go. It's the most compellingly creepy book I've ever read. The less you know about the plot the better, since every chapter is a revelation. I'm still trying to sort out what happened and what it all means. 

Another book that's just as powerful, but a bit more life affirming despite it's difficult subject matter is Little Bee. The book reviewer in the Washington Post was absolutely right when she mentioned not being put off by the cute title or book cover. I had seen this book for months but never picked it up because I judged it by its cover (I thought it was chick lit)!

Now I'm looking for a new book to read. Do you have any suggestions?

A friend of mine joked that she hoped her almost four-year-old daughter, would be leaving the "tantrum-ing threes" and enter the "fabulous fours." Boy, I feel her pain!

There seems to be something different about preschool tantrums compared to toddler ones. In my own experience, toddler tantrums wereshort lived and were more about my son not being able to communicate what he was thinking or feeling. Now it seems like many of his tantrums have to do with his stubborn desire to get what he wants.

Last week when we went out for dinner, Kellan picked at his food and just wanted to watch something on Erik's iPhone. I wanted to finish my dinner. So even though I knew it was purely for our own convenience, we allowed him watch a video. After about 15 minutes, we paid the check and were ready to leave. We asked Kellan to put on his coat so we could go. He refused to cooperate  or give up the phone no matter how many different ways we asked him. When Erik took the phone awayit started an embarrassing tantrum. Thankfully, we whisked him out of the restaurant and into the car quickly, but he kicked and screamed the whole car ride home.

After a timeout, a talk with Erik, and a bowl of cereal Kellan was completely transformed. Except for a blotchy face, there wasn't any other evidence of the massive meltdown. He was in a great mood when we put him to bed. I appreciate the quick recovery, but I'm still wondering why his reaction was so extreme.

I was able to find some good advice on how to react when my child flies off the handle, like keeping calm no matter how angry your child gets. I also think not giving but showing your child you love him despite his behavior is important. I understand it's probably maddening for a child to feel like he doesn't have a say, but you can't always get what you want.

What are your thoughts on how to handle tantrums?

Recently, I bought take-out food in packaging made biodegradable plastic made of corn. It's exciting to see more Earth-friendly plastic materials but after doing some reading, I realized doing the right thing for the planet isn't always straightforward.

Most plastic is petroleum-based, which does not biodegrade. Plastics made from corn are supposed to be compostable, but an article in Smithsonian magazine found corn plastic is only biodegradable in a controlled composting environment. You need an industrial composting facility with optimal conditions for at least 10 days in a row to encourage microbes to break down plant matter. So your backyard bin probably won't cut it.

So what's a conscientious consumer supposed to do? My opinion is that we need to try our best to forgo throwaway packaging as much as possible. Recycling is great, but there are plenty of plastics that recycling companies won't accept and end up in landfills. I started buying things like grains and cereals in bulk. I save money and I reduce packaging when I reuse the same containers. My grocery store even sells shampoo and lotion in bulk. I haven't tried that yet, but I should.

What do you think about compostable packaging? Do you have your own tips for reducing packaging?

Kellan is obsessed with Bear Grylls. It all started when Erik thought it would be cool to show Kellan a television show about Bear surviving harsh conditions in the Panamanian jungle. Since we've been to Panama, Kellan had a point of reference and took an instant liking to the affable TV personality. Now Kellan loves to shout, "Look! I'm Bear Grylls!" as he clambers over fallen tree branches or sprints through mud puddles. It's messy business being a junior adventurer. The picture above is of Kellan reliving a Bear Grylls adventure at our friends' house. It's a good thing they don't mind a little couch jumping!

I told my friend how much Kellan loves Bear Grylls and she replied, "Wow, that's an intense show!" I don't think my friend was judging me, but I did feel self-conscious. Were we bad parents for letting our preschooler watch Bear Grylls? Sure, there are moments when the show gets a little intense, but we've been able to explain things as we go and we would definitely skip any scene that was too graphic.

We thought it would be fun for Kellan to watch someone take on the elements and look like he's (mostly) having a great time. The show has really captivated him and it's fun to watch him make up adventures even if he's just at home making a cave out of the couch cushions. But maybe we should show him more videos of less dramatic but just as captivating explorer adventures on the National Geographic Kids site.

What do you think about kids finding role models?