RookieMoms Blog

If you have never heard of this book, well, welcome to the blogosphere. You must be new here.

The multi-talented Rita Arens, who blogs at Surrender Dorothy, has edited an anthology of writings from other parent bloggers. And she did a damn good job.

After reading Sleep is for the Weak, I thought, You know, I don’t really want to bother reading mommyblogs anymore. All that clicking and scrolling is just too much work. I am just going to let Rita Arens collate the best writing she can find, wrap it up in a bow, and present it to me each year. Then, as I did with this first volume (the first of many in my fantasy world), I will snuggle up on the couch and read myself some most excellent essays.

The writing is so clean and clear, I devoured the book within two days. Each time I finished a piece, I wanted to go email the author and send her my reaction. It was so tempting, knowing that these are people who I either sort of know or could get to know, via their blogs. I wanted to thank them for taking the time to articulate their thoughts in such a way that I knew exactly what they meant.

I especially liked the work of Susan Wagner, Finslippy, 3-Kid Circus, and Fussy, writers that I don’t usually read, but whose words were so well-chosen, that I will now.

As I always say about my own book, for your new mom friends who are not going to become blogaholics, give them the gift of these essays, which originated on the web, but are definitely fit for print.
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Giveaway! Since Heather and I already purchased our own copies of this book, the review copy given to us by the Parent Bloggers Network will go to one commenter on this post, randomly chosen on September 1, 2008.

I bribed my kid with blik balloon decals. Go over to GearheadMom.com to see what I’m talking about. I guest blogged about them.

I just reread my post from last August about the 13 things that confused me about preschool, and I’m happy to report that after one year, things are much much easier.

Just like those first few weeks months with a new baby take a lot of adjustment (and the first few days weeks back at work), so, too, the first few months of preschool involve a lot of learning.

And here I am to tell you what I learned:

• Yes, Laptop lunchbox is worth the money. Less waste, less fuss. So easy. I’ve got one for my 17 month old to start using next month. You can buy extra parts for the inside at a great deal if you don’t care about matching. I don’t care about matching.
• Alissa was right about the sleeping bag. I tried to scrimp there and wish I hadn’t. Yeah, $50 is a lot of money, but if they use it every darn day for 3 years, and it doesn’t fall apart after weekly washing, it’s probably worth it. I’m buying a Bazoongi (now on sale for $36) for Milo to start using next month (Holden will have to stick with his REI heavy fleece bag until it falls apart though)
• Between Mabels Labels and sharpies, it really pays to label everything you want to get back. The sticky tagmates work on clothes and plastic bits.
• I can indeed change a poopy diaper standing up. The trick is to get the kid to tip over (or do a downward dog) so you have a clear shot. But thank God for potty training.

When I first faced the task of buying underwear for my son, I was reluctant to go the Thomas route, although I had heard from parents since before I was even a parent myself that Thomas undies are a critical bribe on the road to potty training. So I bought them. But frankly they offend my aesthetics. Stylewise, my husband and I are more often guilty of splurging on Lucky brand clothes for our kids and less often likely to accept hand-me-downs with any characters or animals on them. Ok, maybe underwater animals are ok. And birds. No doggies, if you get what I mean.

So a couple of weeks into potty training (you are correct; this was not an overnight process for us) I realize that we need to have about 15 pairs of underwear on hand. I’ve bought some cute ones at GAP, but c’mon, I can’t be paying adult underwear prices for kid undies; I’d rather spend on what gets worn on the outside. Then, I discover that Hanes makes boxer briefs. I buy a 3-pack and my son LOVES them. They are navy, red, and grey. There are no licensed characters and no prints. So cute hanging out of the back of his pants. And his bum, it looks like a tiny little man-bum, and this is probably inappropriate to love your son’s butt so much, but hello? SO CUTE! IN BOXER BRIEFS!

Months pass and we are in the clear with potty training. I am about ready to buy some larger undies when my blogeriffic friends Julie and Kristen alert me to the offer of a set of socks and undies Hanes wants to send me for review. Heck, yeah.

Heather accepted the offer as well and warned me that what arrived was plain white tighty whiteys and her son absolutely refused to wear them. Interesting, I thought, but I also suspected that Julian would have a different take because Julian LOVES NEW CLOTHES.

The next day, the tighty whiteys arrived and I showed them to my son. Do you know what he said? “Hooray! Throw spaghetti up in the air! Plain white undies!” (Throw spaghetti up in the air is his expression for celebratory moments).

Then, he took the entire package up to his room and put all 6 pairs on, one atop the next. So if you haven’t gathered my conclusion already, let me be clear: Not only do Hanes plain white undies offer a clean and comfortable undergarment solution for your young child, they also provide entertainment and gross motor skill activity.

Thanks, Hanes and PBN, for the opportunity to see my three-year old in tighty whiteys. We love them. And we appreciate your offer to refund if they are not comfortable.

I was recently reading Amalah’s pregnancy countdown and it struck me: we, rookie moms are frequently lamenting that Nobody Ever Told me this or that about momdom. Somehow, despite the long history of motherhood and friendship, we manage to be nearly completely shocked by some (or all) aspects of having a baby.

I know I was shocked despite the fact that I had obsessively watched Whitney with baby Julian for the 6 months leading up to Holden’s birth. Somehow, she made it look “easy.” I came away thinking that a newborn only needed to eat about 3 times a day like the rest of us. Hmmmm.

Seriously, how many people have been shocked at the challenges of breastfeeding, or the surprise of incontinence, an absolute lack of sex drive, or the body “betrayal” of saggy boobs? Like, ummmm all of us?!

And then I got to thinking about the other side of the coin.

Yeah, how about all that unsolicited advice that Other Mother’s are always trying to dust off and pass out? Outdated tips like putting your baby down on their belly to sleep (it works!), sneaking some rice cereal in the bottle (never tried it), or trying a dream feed to encourage longer sleeping… or feeding tips like which bottle to use or how to make breastfeeding more productive (fenugreek, constant pumping, single-side nursing, tandem nursing twins, join a support group (YES)).

So, isn’t that people trying to tell us all that stuff? Discuss.

I tend to think that the only difference between the advice offered and the advice desired is timing. Exact to-the-second when-I-want-to-know-it timing.

What do you call it when you put someone’s head in the toilet? Well that’s what Scarlett (13 months) was doing to her baby doll when I walked into the bathroom this morning. Bad supervision! Bad mommy!

(Heather asked me to review this… so I’m doing a guest spot here!)

I’m a big geek - I just finished my weekly bout with Guitar Hero just before writing this, and I’m a software developer by trade. So when Heather asked me to review Bob the Builder Can-Do Zoo, I thought it would be a great introduction for Holden into the world of computers - or at least mice.

This was really the first time that I’ve tried any kid-friendly programs on the computer. We tried the Sesame Street website a few times, but Holden quickly lost interest - most of those sites have a little flash window that takes up a tiny portion of the screen. He was as fascinated with the browser’s “back” button as he was with tiny Grover and pals.

So when we launched “Bob” and found it taking up the whole screen with its big block letters and cel-shaded style, I was already psyched if only to be rid of any desktop distractions.

Starting the game, however, was not easy - you’re presented with this complex but colorful menu system in which you have to decide if you’re in going into “Story mode” or not. then pick your character, choose if you want to continue a saved game or resume a new one, and finally pick your difficulty level. It’s about the same amount of complexity as Guitar Hero… but for 3 year olds. The whole time, the various characters talk over each other so there is a lot of confusing instructions before you even get to do anything! I of course navigated this through him but he kept asking “Is this the game? Is this it?”

But once we finally got through the menus, it was a pretty cool game - in “easy” mode the tasks are mostly just about learning to use the mouse, which Holden definitely needed… and I learned why a kid sized mouse is important. He had to work really hard to keep his fingers over the buttons, as his palm barely covered the top of the mouse. Anyhow… each activity was 1-2 minutes long and usually involved putting things where they belong, cleaning up and so forth.

In “medium” mode we had the same activities, but had to match up shapes and colors along the way, without a lot of instruction. I liked that: Holden has known his shapes and colors for a while, but here he had to figure out that the purple wrench went in the purple drawer without it being spelled out for him.

This lead to a lot of trial and error, (which is good) but exposed a real weakness in the interaction - there wasn’t any feedback when he picked, for example, an inactive grey drawer. So when he tried to click there, nothing happened. Is it too much to ask for even a goofy laugh or a bonking noise?

The one serious problem we had was that the game kept quitting every 3-4 minutes, with no warning. Holden would be studiously putting road signs into his truck, and suddenly there was the computer desktop, and the game was gone! We were able to start where we left off but I had to navigate those ridiculous menus first. After the 5th time I got fed up and decided it was time to go outside.

Ultimately, I thought the game was great for a 3 year old - fun, colorful, and even a bit educational. We’ll certainly be playing it again, Holden has already been asking about it.

As an aside, I have to admit that sometimes the whole Bob the Builder thing is a little much - I know Holden loves do “do his work” and build stuff but every once in a while I wonder if Bob is just brainwashing him. I guess if I can find another game to teach him to color outside the lines, it will all even out.

This software was sent to Heather via the Parent Bloggers Network and intercepted by her husband. Thanks!

I just got through grocery shopping for my family and awarded myself with three bite-sized chocolate cream pies from Whole Foods because the whole pie seemed too indulgent.

While I was at the Berkeley Bowl, I ran into Superhero Andrea as I was choosing my organic applesauce and she asked me for some good suggestions for picky toddler eaters. In fact, she asked me if I had anything on my blog about it already… which made me think I should write a little something and mine the Internets for their good ideas as well.

When she asked me, I totally drew a blank and thought of all the food Milo routinely dumps on the floor. I thought about his pattern was so erratic that just when I thought he was finished with his meal (because he’d tossed half of it on the floor and started asking for either “dow(n)” or “nigh(t) nigh(t),” he’d actually begin eating his meal again with gusto. Hmmm, but then as we did the dance among aisles, I’d have a new suggestion each time I saw her.

So, friends out there, I’ll share with you my go-to toddler meals and snacks for my 17-month old and ask for yours in exchange. Help a mama out, please!

When the cupboards, fridge, and freezer are bare, these are the things I grab for Milo:

Breakfast

• Frozen waffles (I get the whole wheat, some big, some little with no accoutrements)
• Scrambled eggs (currently on the outs)
• French toast (Sunny makes a whole loaf at a time and freezes it)
• Puffins (regular flavor or cinnamon)
• Raisins
• Banana (little dude eats one every day)

Lunch

• Almond butter and jelly sandwiches on hearty bread, cut small (we still fear the peanut)
• Cheese sticks
• Hard boiled eggs
• Mixed berries: blackberries, blueberries, strawberries
• Other fruit chopped up when time permits
• Firm tofu, usually teriyaki flavor or “savory” whatever that means
• Applesauce (organic, any flavor) mixed with baby cereal to improve scoopability

Snack

• Just Peas, Just Corn, or Just Mixed Fruit from Just Tomatoes (freeze dried fruits and veggies with no added gunk — they can go stale quickly, so just open one package at a time until you go through it)
• Veggie booty
• Goldfish crackers and their Annie’s bunny equivalents
• Whole wheat pita and hummus
• Crispy Italian style breadsticks (more hummus for dipping)
• Half a Puffet from Peas of Mind

Dinner

• Taquitos from Whole Foods (the reason for going to TWO grocery stores and why I deserved my chocolate cream treat)
• Frozen organic peas (I don’t even cook them)
• Plain yogurt
• Aidell’s teriyaki and pineapple meatballs (they last for about a week in the fridge, so once I open the package, you know what lunch is until they’re gone)
• Whatever we’re eating
• Black bean quesadillas
• Small pieces of chicken or fish (sometimes he likes, sometimes he chucks on the floor)
• Homemade guac (made by me and Holden, who likes food better if he makes it)
• Crispy kale chips or cooked zucchini (whatever vegetable we’re having, he’ll usually try one or more before throwing on the floor
• Amy’s frozen pizza bites with spinach (I heat them for Milo in the microwave and for myself in the toaster oven; Holden tries to eat them frozen because I think it’s strange. Go figure.

More inspiration for lunches from Laptop Lunches (the best lunchbox for little ones, I hope to write about soon!), Kiddley lunchbox ideas, Vegan Lunchbox, 5 favorite convenience foods from ParentHacks, and VegCooking.com.

If you’re already packing a mean lunchbox, check out the contest at Vegan Lunchbox and win a copy of Jennifer’s new book: Vegan Lunch Box: 130 Amazing, Animal-Free Lunches Kids and Grown-Ups Will Love!.

I told you mine, now you tell me yours!

In order to carry less luggage, we have rented a carseat on the other end of our trip a couple of times. We have not had an issue… yet. After reading the scary story that Debbie just published on Delicious Baby, I think I will never rely on a rental carseat again. READ THIS!

Why do we own a Tickle-Me-Elmo? Because from time to time my husband determines that following a hot trend is a worthwhile experience that keeps his white-collar-indie-rock-loving butt connected to mainstream America. And because he thought it would be funny to see my expression when my son, who could not have cared less about Elmo at age barely-two, opened the gift on Christmukkah morning.

Since Ryan doesn’t have time to drive around to various stores, nor the personality type to head out for Target at 6 am to mingle with the masses on a special holiday shopping day, he simply created himself an RSS feed to track the presence of the product in a few online stores. When it became available, BAM, click and add to cart.

Same thing when he wanted to buy me a Nintendo Wii, ‘xcept this was a few years later so he got the alert sent to him via SMS. The dude is brilliant, I tell you.

picture from Amazon.com

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This tip brought to you as part of this weekend’s Blog Blast from Hasbro and Parent Bloggers.