Month: November 2007

Why Procrastination Is Bad

When Thing 2 stopped using his high chair, over a year ago, we were happy to get it out of the kitchen. They were always climbing on, pushing, or bumping into it, and it freed up some much needed space. I should have given it a good cleaning before moving to the basement storage room. But, I figured I could just clean it the next time we needed it.

That next time was this weekend, when Thing 3 had his first attempt at solid food. That is, if you can consider rice cereal solid food.

First Cereal First Cereal II

Before we could get those adorable pictures above, I had to deal with what happens when you leave food on a high chair for a year. All that nasty-baby-stuff, which gets into every nook and cranny of the chair, turns into even-nastier-impossible-to-get-off stuff.

chair2.JPG?? Nasty

Santa Makes House Calls

Every parents knows the misery of the yearly trip to the mall to see Santa. Waiting in a long line of hyperactive kids. Your kids start crying the minute they sit in Santa’s lap. Then, you have to waste money on pictures of kids with tears all over their faces.

Well, here‘s a better way. Why not have Santa come to you? You schedule a time for Santa to call your kids on the phone. They will be amazed that he knows so much about them. Of course, you could just have your Uncle Bob do the same thing, but then you won’t get a CD recording of the call. And, can you really trust Uncle Bob not to tell your kids they’ll be getting the loudest, most expensive gift in the world?

Recall Antibacterial Soap?

I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the next class of products to be infected with recall-itis. Studies have shown that antibacterial soap is no better than regular soap and water when it comes to stopping bacterial growth. And, they could lead to super germs that are resistant to antibiotics.

A ban on antibacterial products would be huge. But what I’m more concerned about are these super germs. We have every antibacterial product you could imagine – soaps, wipes, toys – so my house is probably ground zero for super germs.

Read more on super germs…

Four Years Just Like That

Thing 1 just turned four. I go back and forth on whether the time has gone by fast or not. In some ways, it has been a blur, and I remember clearly when there was just one Thing and that was about all I could possibly handle. Now there are three of them, and I probably handle better than I did back then. Then, there are times 4 years seems like a very, very long time, and I can’t even remember what it was like before kids. Oh well, I’m sure the next 4 years will go even faster.

Here is some video from the party, held at a kid’s gym. A bit much for a kid’s party? Are you kidding? Do you think I’d have that many kids in my house? The video is from the end of the party, where they have the birthday boy put on a crown and hand out the all important goody bags.

Daddy’s Dirty Little Secrets

The weight of these two secrets has been building and building, and I just need to get them off my conscience.? You must promise never to tell my kids.

Secret #1: When reading? books to my kids, I often skip words, paragraphs, or even entire pages.? Especially at bedtime.? We have some Thomas the train and Dr. Seuss books that take a really long time to read.? Sometimes, I just flip through the pages, ? avoiding the words altogether, and just make up a few words of my own.

Secret #2: I sneak candy out of their Halloween bags.? Not from Thing 1’s bag, because he counts all the pieces and knows exactly how much he has.? But Thing 2 is too young to realize it, so I keep doing it.

Ok, so I’m a terrible parent.? But can you honestly tell me you haven’t done the same???

It’s All About The Routine

Routine truly is the key to handling a 2 year old. Take bedtime. Usually, a source of stalling, tantrums, coaxing, coercing, and finally, a lot of crying. But when a routine is established, bedtime can actually go fairly easily. Here is the current routine with Thing 2. No detail is too small to repeat every day.

  • Starting at 7pm, put on pajamas
  • Watch either Backyardigans, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, or Little Einsteins
  • Tell Thing 2 to stop jumping on the couch…six times
  • 7:30…Get a drink of milk or apple juice. Thing 2 must open and close the refrigerator door by himself or all bets are off
  • Piggy back ride upstairs
  • Brush teeth. First daddy brushes, then his turn. Thing 2 rinses the brush off and puts toothbrush into holder himself or all bets are off
  • Read the same book we’ve read the previous 4 months. Twice.
  • Two “running hugs” where Thing 2 runs across the room at full speed to hug me while saying “CHICKEN!”. I have no idea how this started, but it is very very important to do it every night
  • Thing 2 must turn on his music and turn off the light himself or all bets are off
  • Cover him with a “night-night”. A night-night is one of daddy’s old tee shirts. Thing 2 doesn’t sleep with a blanket, but a blanket has to be in his crib but not touching him
  • Say goodnight

As I said, it’s all about the routine

Finally A Place For Dads

With all the mom-focused parenting magazines, websites, blog networks, and marketing, you’d think there was no such thing as a dad. Well, the guys at DadLabs have created a voice for dads everywhere. From what looks like their basement studio, they put out several internet TV episodes each week. Basically, Wayne’s World without the bad hair. Recent topics include a debate about Beer at kids birthday parties, and a product test of a Touch Free Diaper Pail.? Go Dads!