HomeI'm no expert, for sure, just a mom whose bumbled through nine years of parenting and gleaned a few things along the way. Here's five things I've learned so far:
1. Avoid the "health and safety" aisle at baby stores -- Yes, you should keep small children from open flames, electrical currents and all manner of poisons. Also, don't let them drown. But this aisle makes you think you need to bubble wrap your entire house, latch every cabinet and the toilet seat, and pad all hard surfaces. I put ugly plastic corner guards on my coffee tables. My toddler son pulled them off almost as soon as they went on, leaving behind a sticky adhesive. Then he gave himself a bloody lip by falling on to the side of the table that I hadn't protected (though I'm sure, with the right contraption, I could have). He yanked off, and then chewed on, several faucet covers I purchased for the bathtub. I think the big blue whale and the dolphin attracted him to the faucet he had otherwise ignored (and never suffered injury from). The snack drawer we latched (why?) he quickly figured out how to open. The latch did keep out my mom, but she really wasn't likely to snatch a bag of Goldfish crackers. Save your money.
2. Say "NO" in the supermarket cereal aisle: If you want to avoid the sugary stuff, say "NO" to the junk as soon as your child is old enough to ask for something because the box is decorated with a hippo, a tiger, a leprechaun. Say it every, single time. The experts are so right on this: Kids don't argue about things for which the answer is always, always no. But give in a few times, and you've opened the floodgates to weekly shopping hell. But say no all the time, and they get the idea. They give up. They move on, and you shop whine free. Frosted stuff? No. Marshmallows? No. Cookie Crunch? Are you kidding me?
3. Let them sleep: Oh, I'm not going to wade into the great debate on how to get your kids to sleep and then stay asleep on all through the night. I'm only going to say that you need to respect kids need for sleep. And you need to learn that the more wired and crazy the child, likely the more tired. We slump in sofas when exhausted; the little ones jump on them. You can watch completely lovely children simply devolve when they don't get a much-needed nap; even older kids' bad behavior can often be charted to too little sleep. The experts say a really astounding number of kids miss out on needed shut eye. Here's one good story on the trend in Wondertime magazine: http://wondertime.go.com/le.... This is bad. Let them sleep.
4. Do this for a great birthday present (preschool to elementary age, probably): I got this idea from my friend M.'s sister S. It's a do-it-yourself treasure chest. Go to a craft's store and purchase a small wooden chest, something that could hold loose change, small toys and other kid collectibles. You find these in the unpainted-wood-stuff section. Buy paint, perhaps a glaze of some sort and craft glue. Then you need decorations. Small wooden figures (animals, flowers and maybe letters to spell out the Birthday Kid's name) and fake "jewels" (often found near the feather boas) are excellent. But anything that can be glued on and looks fun will do. You can do a pirate or princess theme or anything in between. Wrap up all the supplies with the following instructions: Paint, let dry, glue on decorations, enjoy. This gift will not necessarily earn a "Wow" upon opening, but most kids really love to make these boxes. And most parents love to have some cool craft they can pull out when outside play isn't a go.
5. Say this to make yourself loved by Moms the world over: Do not point out that your little bundle of joy is miles ahead when it comes to walking, talking, reading or speaking French. Don't brag about standardized test scores, touchdowns or ballet recitals. Instead, have a story or two at the ready about how you goofed up (here are some: http://blogs.orlandosentine...) or how your kid did. Less than perfect is good. Less than perfect is appreciated. My kid got lunch detention not too long ago for sliding down banisters at his school. Don't you feel better now?
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