we've really been lucky with my older daughter when it comes to dental hygiene. one of her favorite parts of the bedtime routine has always been brushing her teeth. it doesn't hurt that she's got a fancy personalized step stool, yummy tasting toothpaste, and several character-laden toothbrushes on rotation in her bathroom. hey, whatever works right?

unfortunately, she's in what i like to call her DIM phase or "do-it-myself" phase of her toddler-hood. which sometimes means that she likes to brush her own teeth without any of mom's or dad's help. we usually let her give it a try and wince when she gives her teeth a cursory brushing, and then sucks off all the fruit-punch flavored paste from the brush. then we go back in and do a proper cleaning.

of course, there will be a day when she'll brush her teeth without our help. but how to teach her the importance of doing a proper job? i found this idea (via ohdeedoh!):


how cute is that? i know my daughter will love pretending to brush these marshmallow teeth.

Birthday Party Etiquette

i love parties as much as the next person, but i think i'm burned out on little kid birthday parties. throw in some wine, i might be singing a different song. anyway, before i start to digress... starting in late february, we have been to at least one birthday party a weekend, sometimes even two in one day. don't get me wrong, i appreciate the fact that my daughter has friends and they want to celebrate their birthday with her, but i am EXHAUSTED. it's surprising because we only go to about a third of the parties that our kids are invited to, but even still, we have been to a lot of parties in the last 4 weeks.

since we are still in the middle of birthday party season, i thought i would share with you an article on birthday party etiquette for kids. we could all use a little refresher, right?

Spring Showers Bring May Flowers or Allergies?!?

i love everything about spring - crisp air, spring showers, sunshine, sprouting flowers, etc. so, to get in step with spring, i wanted to get new plants for our front yard. i wanted to get "allergy friendly" plants because my husband and daughter have seasonal allergies. when i asked around about "allergy friendly" plants, everyone gave me blank stares. even my husband.

today, i ran across an article from health.com, "10 worst plants for your allergies". it gave me a good sense for what i should avoid. now, i need to find a list of 10 best plants for your allergies. anyone have any leads for me?

we had a beautiful sunny day today and the fresh air inspired me to do some spring cleaning. this wasn't just the casual counter wipe-down. i was on my hands and knees with a toothbrush trying to get the last bit of grime out of the grout on the bathroom floor tiles.

by the time i was done, my back was a wreck, the skin on my hands was dry and reptilian, and worst of all, the entire house smelled of chemicals. so much for my fresh spring air. of course, the culprit behind the scaly skin and stinky house were the harsh chemicals in the cleaning products i've been using. i know none of this is good for me, my family or the environment. but since i already had these products, i feel obliged to finish off what's left in the bottles.

i have been meaning to try cleaning without these harsh chemicals. of course, there are lot of tips on the internet. i found a compilation tips on cleaning without chemicals from trusty Martha, cleaning-with-vinegar tips and some homemade cleanser recipes. green, clean and cheap.

as for my backache? nothing a good massage can't fix, something i deserve after all that cleaning anyway.

we had a playdate the other day with some of my older daughter's friends at an indoor play area. it was a typical playdate for 3-year-olds: squealing, some squabbling, and of course, snacking. my daughter saw her playmates starting to munch so she wandered over to the coffee bar where they had all the kiddie snacks placed at her eye level. my daughter grabbed her preferred mid-morning morsel right out of the display area (chocolate milk and veggie straws) and made a run for the eating area.

of course, when we got home an hour later, my daughter had no appetite for a real lunch. "i'm not hungry!", she declared. which made me think about the nutritional value of those veggie straws and the sugar content in her chocolate milk. and then i was reminded of a New York Times article i read last week about how parents these days are raising a generation of snackers. instead of eating well-rounded, nutritious meals, our little ones are constantly grazing on chips, cookies and sugary drinks. A few choice tidbits from the article:

"...On average, children reach for cookies, chips and other treats about three times a day, consuming nearly 600 daily calories from snacks. That’s an increase of 168 snack calories compared with what children ate in the late 1970s..."

"...Although daily snack calories have increased by 168, overall daily eating during the study period increased by only 113 calories. This suggests that snacking has eroded meal time and that children are taking in slightly fewer calories during breakfast, lunch and dinner, when more healthful foods are typically served, because of their intense snacking habits... "

yikes! what the article said was totally true. at home, i thoughtlessly give my daughter snacks from time to time and then wonder why she isn't hungry for lunch or dinner. every playdate or child-oriented activity my older daughter attends has a correlating snack. it's almost as if a playdate just wouldn't be complete without a snack.

so, here's a late new year's resolution to cutting down on snacking and serving up healthier grub when a snack is requested. more fruits and veggies, less cookies and chips!

dirty bath toys

what kid doesn't like playing with toys in the bath? my daughter probably wouldn't take a bath unless she had her menagerie of rubber dolphins, and fish, and ducks (oh my!). i do try to disinfect them, but it's one of many chores that usually falls by the wayside... after watching this piece from NBC's Today show, i'm heading up to the girls' bathroom and just throwing out most of her tub toy collection.

as part of the Today show's "Secret Filth Exposed!" series, Today asked NYU microbiologist Philip Tierno, a household germ expert, to test several bath toys on loan from a handful of families. what he found coating these innocent looking toys is truly disgusting: fecal matter, e. coli, strep, and staph aureus bacteria.

"bathwater becomes literally a bacterial soup. the toys are the depository of these organisms" said Tierno.

the worst culprits of course were the toys with holes since they usually allow for bacteria to be trapped inside. Tierno opened up some of those toys and what they found inside were compared to the walls of sewers. blech!

see the entire eye-opening and stomach-turning clip below:

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Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

For my first blog entry, I want to share some of my favorite Dr. Seuss quotes. I think you'll sense a common theme. I grew up reading Dr. Seuss books and now, I love reading them to my kids.


“Today you are You, that is truer than true.
There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”

“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.”

“Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.”

“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.”

“I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!”

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”


Happy reading everyone!
nancy

cross-body convenience

i try not to be a slave to fashion trends, but the latest cross-body handbag trend is made for multi-tasking moms. i can picture myself ditching the oversized diaper bag and draping a small pouch over my torso for a morning of errands. keys, wallet and phone -- all I need to pop into the grocery store or pick up my older daughter at school. on-trend, casual, and best of all, hands-free (in a non-fanny-pack way).

now all i have to do is find the just-right bag to take that spot next to my hip. here are my top candidates:

MARC by MARC JACOBS' Totally Turnlock Percy

Clare Vivier's Le Mini Sac

Anya Hindmarch's Handsfree