What Dads Are For!

Today we took a family trip to the playground, my boyfriend, my son and I. I had a chance to watch my son and his dad play together. This experience was special; particularly because my boyfriend often complains that my son "likes me more."

The fact is, I get to spend much more time with our son than my boyfriend does; mainly because I'm home with my little man. It's natural that he would feel strongly bonded to me. My boyfriend (on the other hand) only gets to spend two days a week with our son. Today was one of his days. So I let the boys play together and had fun watching them.

Dad Magic

My niece was over yesterday and my boyfriend took the opportunity to entertain both her and my son with a little magic trick...

Toddlers Down With Mother Nature At The BBG

It was another Tuesday at the BBG (Brooklyn Botanic Garden). I've noticed that my son behaves differently when he is outside as opposed to being in the house. Inside, everything to him is old hat. He knows most every corner of the apartment. But outside, in nature, every little thing is fascinating to him. He could spend an hour examining a blade of grass. Take a look at him and his buddy Luka playing with some of mother nature's gifts, grass and sticks!

The Ramones Inspire Strange Behavior in Toddlers

My good friend Ms. Katie Grinch gave me a fantastic present when my son was born. It was a CD that converted popular Ramones songs into baby lullabies. The CD is called "Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of The Ramones." Unfortunately (because life got so insane after having my son) I hadn't had a chance to listen to the CD until today over a year after she gave it to me. Both my son and I loved it! The CD, as promised, creates a mellow mood for the listener. My son decided to calmly try on some shoes while listening to "I Wanna Be Sedated."

When searched online, I found that Rockabye Baby is a series of CDs. They include lullaby renditions of bands such as AC/DC, The Rolling Stones, Nirvana, The Cure and more. For more information about the Rockabye Baby Ramones CD click here

Just Say "Yes!"

Recently, my son started to say "Yes!" If I ask him a question and the answer is affirmative he lets me know. Sometimes he even says it in Russian:

My son's new found power overwhelms him, and he likes to say yes to everything. Like when my best friend Mint was over and she asked him:

"Are you a unicorn?"
He promptly replied
"Da!" or "Yes!"

In all seriousness, he realizes there is a choice between "yes" and "no." But there is something greater going on here. The other day, he found a zip lock bag with a piece of old bagel in it. I had an urge to say "No!" or "Don't eat that!" But I stopped myself.

Instead I said:
"Thank you! Is that for me?"
And reached my hand out to take the zip lock bag from him.
He kindly handed over the old bagel smiling the whole time. In my own way, I said "Yes!" instead of "No!" I embraced the situation rather than fighting it.

The truth is, it takes a lot of energy to say "No!" and get all excited because my child is doing something I would rather he refrain from doing. It feels much better and yields more positive results to just say "Yes!"

CNN.com: Children's Tylenol Recall

My friend Donna sent me this CNN article regarding a recall of 21 Children's Tylenol products. There was bacteria present during the manufacturing process of these products. While Tylenol states that the bacteria was not used the final product, they are still recalling these items.

See link below:

CNN.com Tylenol Recall Article

A Banana Shake Saves The Day

I have learned that bananas are weapons of mass distraction. Today, however, a banana further amazed me with its capabilities.

This evening my boyfriend, my son and I had dinner with my parents. My son was having a difficult time during the meal. He had been teething all day, and as a result he had 102 fever, was cranky, drooling and refusing to eat his dinner. I was exasperated. I kept re-offering him the chicken, rice and beans combination that we were eating, but he was not having it.

All of a sudden, my boyfriend shot out of his seat at the table.
"I have an idea!"
He grabbed a banana, some plain yogurt and milk and threw them all into a blender.

Then we searched frantically around my parent's house for a straw. We found an enormous one
(formerly belonging to an old Weight Watchers travel mug) that my boyfriend cut down to toddler-size with a scissor.

The banana shake was a hit! My little guy was sucking down this concoction like mad.
This was a triumph on multiple levels:

1. I was glad that he was getting some nourishment, since he wasn't eating dinner.
2. He has been refusing to drink milk. Now I know how to bribe him to drink whole milk; banana shakes!

He even decided to feed me some of the shake...along with the straw...