The Ecology Center, a Michigan-based nonprofit organization, today released the results of their testing of 1,200 popular children’s toys for toxic chemicals at www.HealthyToys.org. Of the 1200 toys they tested over a third were positive for lead.
From the Healthy Toys website:
Seventeen percent (17%) of the products had levels above the 600 ppm. The federal recall standard for lead paint is 600 ppm. The testing detected more than 6,700 ppm in Dollar Store animal figurines; 3,056 ppm in a Hannah Montana Pop Star Card Pack; and 1,700 ppm lead in a pair of Circo baby shoes.
Do you find those numbers frightening? I did. And here I thought I couldn’t be surprised any longer.
Every year I bring my children to the dollar store, where armed with their dollars they buy each other Christmas presents. They look forward to this during the holidays and have already asked when we are going to draw names. This year I am not sure what I am going to do. The idea of going into a store filed with cheap, most likely contaminated, toys is not at all appealing.
On the other hand they look forward to it so much.
But the lead.
I can’t really give then free reign in a regular toy store.
But the lead.
I am trying to think up exciting alternatives for them, but thus far have drawn a blank. I am going to have to break it to them soon that the dollar store isn’t in our future. It would be nice to have something else in mind as a replacement when I bring it up. To quell the rending of clothing and gnashing of teeth.
Just how does Santa manage to get all around the world and deliver presents in a single evening? It is the question that plagues all of us. Especially those of us with children between the ages of 5-8 years old, who suddenly start asking questions based in reality. I usually answer with a shrug and ask, “Well, how do you think he does it?”
But now, we have the official answer.
Anders Larsson of the engineering consultancy Sweco told AFP. “We estimated that there are 48 people per square kilometer (120 per square mile) on Earth, and 20 metres (66 feet) between each home. So if Santa leaves from Kyrgyzstan and travels against the Earth’s rotation he has 48 hours to deliver all the presents.”
That gives him 34 micro-seconds at each house. 34 micro-seconds to come down the chimney, deliver the presents, drink his milk and cookies, and get back on his sleigh. You know what I have to say about this?
No wonder he makes such a mess with those cookies every Christmas Eve. The poor guy has to shove them in his mouth so fast. I’ll have to cut him some slack this Christmas morning when I break out the vacuum.
I love this time of year. All the holiday preparations, the traditions that I have built with my own family, as well as reminiscing about Christmases past. I think that the unique traditions we establish are the corner stones of our families. I joke that our family is bound together by gingerbread.
I love decorating the house. We don’t have many knic-knacs around the house normally, so when I pull out the holiday decor the house feels full. And I mean that in a good way.
Every January when I pack all of the ornaments, and decorations, and plates, and lights back up into their respective boxes, I am struck by how sparse the house looks. But then we get used to it until the next year rolls around. My son told me this year as we looked through the boxes that it was like coming home.
And I understand exactly what he means. Outwardly we are showing the spirit of the season. Because somehow that goodwill and cheer we promise ourselves will extend throughout the entire year dissipates.
Last night was the first night of Advent. And as such the beginning of our favorite family tradition, reading our Advent story by candlelight.
The kids look forward to this all year long. Truth be told, so do I.
