2008 July | Mommy Points

July 31, 2008

Not All You Ever Wanted

Filed under: Humor Keeps Me Sane, parenting — Chris @ 5:15 am

This just in… vacations are work!

Okay any of us that are mothers already know this. In fact, I recently wrote that in my next life I want to come back as the father who honestly doesn’t get why vacationing is a lot of work. And don’t even get me started on camping. That is like moving house to a more primitive setting. Just how many modern conveniences can we take away from you and still have you able to function. No bathrooms? No running water? Cooking over an open fire? Yeah, I don’t come from a lone of hearty pioneer folk. Our idea of roughing it is the 4 star hotel.

In a recent column in Newsweek, Kathy Deveny writes about the mythical family vacation. She shares her memories of long car trips she took with her family as a kid.

Unencumbered by seat belts, my brother and I roamed into each other’s carefully guarded back-seat territory and bickered until one of our parents lost it. We stopped at motels with pools and ate “picnic” dinners in front of the TV. But they’re some of the best memories of my childhood. (”I don’t remember it quite so fondly,” says my mom.)

Turns out the time honored family vacation as we know it did not evolve until the 1950’s when post WWII prosperity made it possible. Before then Mom’s did not have to take the entire “show on the road.”

Even though I like to complain, I still enjoy family vacations. If only because everyone else is having fun and I can live vicariously through them.

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July 29, 2008

Five Favorite Children’s Books for Summer

Filed under: Children, Ideas, Just For Fun — Chris @ 9:37 am

Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey

Since we love blueberry picking, this is a natural favorite for us. I remember this story from when I was a little kid. And the thing about great children’s stories is that they never grow old. The story and illustrations are timeless.

Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney

Another great heartwarming story anout Miss Rumphius who, after having adventures in her life, remembers her uncle’s sage advice to make the world a more beautiful place. She sets out to do that, literally.

Fireflies! by Julie Brinckloe

Not quite old enough to be considered a classic like the two books above, this book is sure to become a new family favorite. it is the story of a boy who catches a jar full of fireflies and then realizes that he can not keep them in a jar forever. perfect for all of those children who enjoy catching little critters.

The Gardener, by Sarah Stewart

This story is multi layered, and like the best of them appeals to children and the adults who read to them. It is set during the Great Depression and is about a 10 yr old girl who leaves her family in the country to go live with her uncle in the city. Here she turns the roof into a garden.

The Carrot Seed, by Ruth Krauss

Despite everyones dire predictions, a little boy perseveres and grows a carrot. Love this book and the simple message that paitence and hard work pays off.

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July 28, 2008

We Have Blueberries!

Filed under: Children, Just For Fun — Chris @ 8:11 am

Kerplink! Kerplank! Kerplunk!

One of our favorite things about summer is picking blueberries from the huge bushes in our yard. They were planted way before we moved here and love the location. I am not sure how many years it would take to get mature bushes that are so prolific, but I do know that if we ever move from here I will plant some more. It is like gardening, but without any of the work.

We ususally get so many blueberries that we are able to bake pies, blueberry crisps, sauces for ice cream, muffins and then freeze some so that we areable to enjoy those during the long, long winter.

Two years ago we planted strawberry plants in a small patch near the house. And while they seem to be doing okay, they are not producing many strawberries yet. I am not sure how long we need to wait for that to start happening, but I look forward to not having to divide a strawberry into quarters.

Anyone who doesn’t have bushes of their own, I would highly encourage you to go to one of those pick-your-own places. Kids really love it and it gives them such a sense of accomplishment.

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July 27, 2008

Freecycle, I Want to Love You

Filed under: Keeping It Real, On The Web — Chris @ 7:18 am

I think I have written before about my local Freecycle group. Freecycle, for those of you who haven’t heard of it, is a way of passing on items that are no longer of use to you rather then sending them to your local landfill or thrift store. There are groups all over the country and you only have to check online for the one nearest to you and join the mass email list.

It is great for items like that old Commodore 64 that has been languishing in the back of your garage. It turns out that it really is true, one man’s junk is another mans treasure.

So that is how it would work in theory. The reality I have found is that people will email and say “OMG I have been wanting that Commodore 64 for my entire life. Please can I be the one to have it!” Then you will set up a time for them to come and pick it up. And they never show up.

Rinse, lather, repeat. Until finally you get so tired of that Commodore 64 sitting on your front porch next to your front door that you haul it off to the dump.

Also, you will get tired of people emailing the list asking for cars, laptops, computers, flat screen televisions, etc.

But I think I have discovered a way around this: the Freecycle tag sale. Like a regular tag sale you set all your unwanted stuff out, except that no money is exchanged for the items. It seems that the people who actually show up for the freecycle tag sale are intent on taking stuff home. And you only have to wait around for one afternoon for you stuff to all go to better homes.

At least I am hoping that it works that way for me. I’ll let you know how it works out.

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July 26, 2008

The Last Lecture

Filed under: On The Web, parenting — Chris @ 6:06 am

Randy Pausch died yesterday of pancreatic cancer at the age of 47.

I am sure by now most people have heard of Randy Pausch, the Last Lecture professor. Here is a link to his last lecture should you have no idea what I am talking about. It is long, about an hour, but seriously one of the best speeches ever about what it means to live your life to the fullest. Are you following your dreams? And more importantly, how are you helping your children to follow theirs. I watched the speech and then rewatched with my kids.

More than 10 million people have watched an Internet video of the talk. The lecture was translated into seven languages, and Hyperion published a book version that became a New York Times bestseller.

Diane Sawyer did an interview with him a few months ago that was equally as inspiring as his last lecture speech. And equally as heartbreaking. If you haven’t watched the video, I urge you to take the time to do so. It might just be life changing.

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July 24, 2008

August Reading

Filed under: Children, Just For Fun, On The Web — Chris @ 8:19 am

There is still one long month left of summer. At least around here where I live, I have heard that some of you have kids returning back to school next week… what sort of craziness is that!?! Even so, if you have not heard of Barnes and Noble’s Summer Reading Program you still have time to check it out.

We have participated every year. We are a family of book lovers. And free books? Well, we love those even more!

Your children read any eight books. Write about their favorite part on a sheet your print off of the website. Then bring the page to a Barnes & Noble bookstore on or before September 2. Then they get to choose their free book from a list of paperback titles.

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July 21, 2008

Lying About Your Vegetables

Filed under: Keeping It Real, On The Web — Chris @ 5:49 am

I just read something funny in which the writer exposes that most people when asked about their vegetable intake LIE about it. Much in the same way that they have determined that people under estimate their caloric intake on a daily basis by as much as 30%, people do the opposite with the vegetable and fruit intake.

According to the experts we are supposed to have five servings of vegetables per day. How many of us actually do every day?

I wasn’t sure so I found this website where it lists exactly what sizes each serving is:

1/2 cup of fruit
1 medium piece of fruit
1/4 cup of dried fruit
3/4 cup (6 ounces) of 100% fruit or vegetable juice
1 cup of leafy vegetables
1/2 cup of cooked or raw vegetables

Trying to visualize the serving sizes? This may help:

1 medium apple or orange: the size of a tennis ball
1 cup vegetables or fruit: the size of a baseball
1 medium potato: the size of a computer mouse
1 cup of lettuce: 4 leaves

Huh, when I look at the serving sizes, I think I am doing fairly well. Maybe not on a daily basis, some days I eat more veggies than others, but I think that it evens out by the end of the week. The same goes for my children.

I noticed last week that one of my children, who has been on an “I hate salad” kick for a few weeks, suddenly was eating handfuls of salad right out of the serving bowl after dinner. After he had already eaten his own salad with dinner. He probably ate an entire weeks worth of vegetable servings in that one meal. This is one of the reasonsthat I don’t stress too much about my children’s eating habits or force them to eat food they don’t want. In the end it always seems to work out. That if I trust them to trust their own bodies they will eat healthily.

The website also offers some snacking tips for ideas on how to get all of your servings in per day. Not surprisingly, potato chips do not count as a vegetable.

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July 19, 2008

How Much Is Too Much?

Filed under: Instilling Values, parenting — Chris @ 8:44 am

Last week when I was on one of the many. many airplanes that I crisscrossed the country in, I had a conversation with a man sitting next to me. His children were both grown, in their mid twenties, and he was lamenting the fact that neither of them had jobs, real jobs. They were both still sort of floating through life, having graduated college, but still having no idea what to do for themselves. he said it isn’t so much that they haven’t found their dream career yet, as it is that they are not even looking for it.

He blamed himself. He said that when he was younger he had to work his way through college. He had no choice but to get a job after college. In fact, it was never even a viable option to NOT get a job. But yet with his son and his son’s peers, not having a job is completely acceptable. He attributes this to parents giving their kids everything resulting in a generation of kids who feel a sense of entitlement.

It was a great conversation. It is tempting to give our kids everything, simply because we love them and want to give it all to them. We want their lives to be easier than ours were. But at what point does helping our kids really hinder them?

Maybe by giving our kids everything we are missing out on giving them the biggest gift of all.

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July 16, 2008

Palpitations Over Pills For Kids

Filed under: Children, On The Web, parenting — Chris @ 8:30 am

Cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, the most prescribed pills in the world, have become a family affair.

I try not to be a one of those sanctimonious parents who looks down on how other people parents their children. I have been a parent long enough to know that sometimes you do what you have to do, and that never is a REALLY long time. I have had to eat my own words long enough to know that they had better be sweet.

One day when we were at the baseball field, surprise there , huh?, there was a mother who was feeding her child junk food after junk food. The little girl was extremely overweight. Not chubby, this child was obese. And yet I watched this mother, on more than one occassion, buy her daughter a never ending stream of junk food. And even more telling to me was that the mother was overweight, but always wearing work out clothes. So clearly this is an issue for her as well.

I didn’t judge the mother so much as I felt bad for the little girl. None of my children are overweight. And I still would never allow them to eat the amount of junkfood that I watched this child eat. Not only that but she would ask other people to buy her junk food also or ask other children for someof theircandy.

It saddens me that this child is being easily set off on the path of bad eating habits, and we know how habits are made and hard to break. It is equally sad to me that children are being placed on cholesterol lowering drugs when for the vast majority of children they probably are not necessary. We all talk about how children don’t go out to play any longer, how video games have replaced actual play. But what do we do about it? Even kids who are not overweight would benefit from more outside play time.

I know that people will say, well the guidelines are pretty specific regarding the prescription of these medications, but I know that doctors will start prescribing them to overweight children across the board. What about the side effects? What about the long term risks?

Are people going to begin relying on the statin drugs for their children rather than encouraging healthy diets and exercise?

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July 13, 2008

Thinking About College?

Filed under: Children, On The Web, Saving, Work Ethic — Chris @ 11:50 pm

I have a niece and nephew currently in college. Do you have any idea how high tuition is at private colleges these days? It is absurdly, frighteningly costly. When my sister-in-law told me how much money she was paying for their schools I may have clutched my chest and fallen over on the ground.

Many schools are doing things to make tuition affordable to middle class families. Harvard and Yale have both increased the assistance they give to middle class families. This is possible in part because of their huge endowments.

But another school has a unique approach. Berea in Kentucky has no tuition. The school motto is “the best education you can’t buy.” Every single student has a 4 year tuition scholarship. Students are required to work 10-15 hours per week doing jobs that help keep the campus running. Food is grown at the campus farm. Talk about instilling a strong work ethic in young adults. Working toward your own education is really a great idea.

There are income requirements in order to be accepted to the college. In a nutshell, you have to be poor. You also have to be smart. Most of the students graduated within the the top 20% of their class.

I still have a few more years before my ~~money~~ oldest child goes off to college. I have a little while longer to keep plugging ears and singing “La la la, I can’t hear you.”

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